


The Return of Ben Solo

by xanderlike



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: AU, Chewbacca is still the awesome uncle we all need, Dark!Rey, F/M, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, Light!Ben, Luke is still cranky, Non-Graphic Rape/Non-Con, Snoke Uses Different Approach But He's Still Not Nice
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-10-04
Updated: 2019-03-31
Packaged: 2019-07-25 07:37:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 28
Words: 61,329
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16193042
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xanderlike/pseuds/xanderlike
Summary: The Jedi Academy has been destroyed. Luke Skywalker is missing. Kyla Ren and the First Order are wreaking havoc on the Galaxy. Ben Solo might be able to help stop them, but only if he can overcome his fear of losing himself to the Dark Side ... which is something that Kyla really really wants to happen.





	1. Kyla Ren

Ben Solo was dead.

 

Supreme Leader Snoke of the First Order paused as he considered that thought. Solo had Skywalker blood, and the Skywalkers were always hard to kill off. It was just barely possible that Solo _was_ alive but if that was the case he had clearly shut himself off from the Force. In that case, it wasn't very likely that he would ever be found again. Even Snoke couldn't find a Force User who consciously shut himself off from the Force.

 

However, his search for Solo had borne fruit … even if of a different sort than what he had been seeking.

 

Jakku was a nowhere planet. Snoke was familiar with the type. The last important thing that had happened here was a battle between the Rebel Alliance and the Empire. The world had little to offer other than the debris of that battlefield that provided a living of sort for the small population that lived on this world.

 

And yet it was on this world that Snoke had found a Force signature to rival Ben Solo. A power young and untried- and as yet dormant- that still burned through the Force like a supernova.

 

Yes … this was where he needed to be. This child would be what he would need to make his Knights of Ren a fearsome force.

 

She (for he had discovered after careful investigation that it was a human female) was important enough that he had gone to Jakku personally. Her will was strong- she could not be coerced into joining the First Order, but she could be convinced. And there was no one more adept at such things than Snoke himself.

 

So he traded in his imperial robes for a simple trader's uniform. He carried a wooden staff (ostensibly to help him walk) and a small supply of rations. The taste was bland, but he had no doubt that to a starving youngling abandoned on a junk heap of a planet they would taste like heaven.

 

He waited till nightfall before he approached the girl's home. Making a show of being a tired old man, he set up a camp for himself outside of the wreckage that served as her home. He started to prepare the food rations. Humans didn't have the keenest sense of smell in the galaxy, but he had no doubt that the odor of cooking food would reach her shortly.

 

And when the food was ready, he turned and looked around in the shadows. "Hello? Is there someone there? I don't have anything worth stealing, but I'll share my food if you promise not to hurt me."

 

After a moment, a slender girl stepped out of the shadows. She was even younger than he had thought she would be. She carried a staff with her. Her movements were wary, her senses alert to treachery. "I won't hurt you."

 

"Good. I'm afraid it would be a wasted effort. Everything I had worth stealing was taken from me long ago." He spooned some food out in a small dish and gave it to the girl. "Go on. Take it. It's not very tasty, but it's filling."

 

She wolfed down her portion quickly and then looked at him. "I still have some bread rations. I can share them with you."

 

"That won't be necessary, child. I'm an old man. I don't need much food." He spooned some more out for her. "Here. Eat. You need it more than I do." He sighed and then looked at her with a faint smile. "You know, you're just the age my daughter was when she died."

 

"I'm sorry." She looks at him with honest compassion, and he finds it vaguely surprising that a child living such a harsh life still has it in her to feel empathy for other people. "Did she suffer?"

 

"The ship she was on was destroyed in a clash between the Rebel Alliance and the Empire." He closed his eyes as if in pain. "Neither side bothered to pick up any survivors."

 

"I'm sorry," she said again.

 

"Do you have parents, child?"

 

"Not here," she admitted. "They're coming back for me. They promised. That's why I have to stay here. So they'll be able to find me."

 

"Oh? How long has it been?"

 

"A very long time. I'm sure they'll be back any day now."

 

"Do you really think so, Rey?"

 

"How did you know my name?" There was a pathetic eagerness in her next words. "Did they send you to come get me?"

 

He smiled sadly. "No. And I know your name because I read it in your mind. Just like I read the truth about your parents there."

 

"What do you mean?"

 

He smiled gently. "You know your parents aren't coming back, Rey. You've known that for a long time. They're coming back is a fairytale you tell yourself to help you sleep at night."

 

"That's not true!"

 

"Search your feelings. You know it to be true."

 

And then Rey began to cry.

 

He waited a few minutes for her to get it out of her system, then handed her a handkerchief. "I know it hurts to be abandoned, Rey. The same thing happened to me. My people considered me nothing." He smiled. "That's literally what my name means among my people: nothing. They hurt me." And he laid a hand on his deformed head. "They took whatever I had whenever I wanted- until I discovered I had something within me that could protect me and what I cared about."

 

With a thought, he caused the rocks and broken pieces of metal around his campsite to start to float.

 

"Are you a Jedi?" Her eyes went wide.

 

"Oh no, my dear."

 

"A Sith?" She stood up in fright.

 

"I'm not a Sith, child. I'm something else entirely. I'm someone who finds people like you and me- people who are treated as nothing by everyone with a title and wealth- and make them into something capable of protecting what matters to them. My name is Snoke. And I am the Supreme Leader of the First Order."

 

"But the First Order kills so many people and you seem so nice-"

 

"I don't want to kill people, Rey, but sometimes you haven't got a choice. If those who have so much aren't willing to share … well they can choose to surrender or fight. It's not my fault if they make the wrong choice."

 

"Why come out here to me? I'm nothing. I'm no one."

 

"That's not true, Rey, and you know it. You know you were always destined for something better. Surely you can feel it. You're like me, Rey. A nobody meant to change the galaxy. The power you saw me wield is inside you too. You can use it to help me. To help people like yourself."

 

She was clearly wavering.

 

"I will never abandon you, Rey," he promised her gently. "Come with me and I will give you food and a warm bed and you will want for nothing ever again. You will never be alone again. I'll always be with you."

 

"Supreme Leader ..." she said … testing the phrase out.

 

"That's what most people who work with me call me because they think I am wise. You on the other hand … you I think will call me something else because I see so much of myself in you."

 

"What? What do you want me to call you?"

 

He opened his arms out to the girl. "Father."

 

With a cry, the girl launched herself into his arms and buried her face against his chest. Years of longing for a home, for a family, burst forth from her in that moment …

 

Just as he knew it would.

 

"Rey, Rey. It's all right, child. You're safe now. You're safe." He tilted her face up with a touch to her chin. "But as your father, it's time for me to give you a new name."

 

"A new name?" She looked up at him with wet eyes. "I have a name ..."

 

"Why hang onto the name given you by people who didn't want you, child? Let me show my love for you by giving you a new name to start your new life."

 

"All right." She sniffled a bit, but nodded.

 

"Kyla Ren. Your name is Kyla Ren. And together … together you and I will reshape the Galaxy!"

 

He hugged the girl to him. "Come, child. It's time for us to go home."

 

"Home," Kyla Ren said, tasting the word like water after a hot Jakku day. "Home … I'm ready … Father."

 

And the two of them walked off into the night.

 

 

 


	2. Just Ben

Six years later little on Jakku had changed. The people had grown more desperate perhaps, even poorer if that were possible. Life was still a struggle for almost everyone.

 

But the little girl named Rey was gone.

 

Life was hard on Jakku. The presumption was that some outlaw had finally caught the scavenger unaware- alone as she was, blossoming as she was … it was only a matter of time, really. Here and there someone felt a trace of pity for that poor lost girl … but that was all.

 

On Jakku, few of the living have time or enough compassion left to mourn the dead.

 

The tall man who had claimed Rey's home was one of them.

He was a stranger to Jakku, having only been there a few months. His ship had barely remained intact long enough to get him to Jakku. He had scrapped the ship- it wasn't worth repairing, even on Jakku- and had moved into the girl's abandoned AT-AT home. He had even searched for her body, knowing that the odds were against him finding anything recognizable as a human bone in such a harsh environment but still wanting to give the girl the dignity in death that she had been denied in life.

 

His inquiries about the girl had made those with long memories wonder if perhaps he was a member of the girl's family … that her fantasy of having someone looking for her had a grain of truth … but he had denied any kinship. Though that was literally true in one sense, in another it was a lie.

 

The girl had been strong in the Force.

 

Even now … years after her passage, he could feel echoes of her Light within it. After years of wandering, this deserted hellhole, this lonely makeshift home was the closest he had felt to home in ages. In fact, he had taken to carrying her doll with him because her Light clung to it most of all.

 

And he was a man in desperate need of all the Light he could find.

 

"You spend too much time with ghosts, Ben Solo," the translucent figure of a blond young man told him as he watched Ben prepare his evening meal. "Both literal and figure."

 

"Feel free to go haunt some other family member if it bothers you, Grandfather," Ben said. He ruefully rubbed his hand along his bearded face. He was not old- he had yet to see 30- but the beard he wore was already streaked with gray. He would have shaved it off, but that was a waste of water he would not quite countenance.

 

"You know I'm here with you for a reason, Ben," Anakin said with a ghostly sigh. "You cannot hide from your destiny. You are needed."

 

"No. I'm not. I think what happened at the Jedi Academy proves that. If I hadn't gone there, if Uncle Luke had not exhausted himself freeing me from Snoke—"

 

"Those deaths are not on your hands, Ben. Gifted as you are, you were a barely trained boy. You could not have fought off an army no matter how hardly you fought. You tried."

 

"They're still dead. And no matter what you say, I'm destined to bring death and destruction to anything or anyone I care about. That's why I'm here- far away from anything or anyone that matters to me. Ben Solo isn't needed- by anyone."

 

"Your parents would disagree- if they knew you were still alive." It was a sore spot for Ben- which was why Anakin used it so frequently.

 

"Mom's busy with the Senate. Dad never liked being around me anyway. They were ashamed of me. They were afraid of me. They're better off without me."

 

"The galaxy is in turmoil, Ben. If you just reached out with your power you would see that the Force is out of Balance once more-"

 

"No. I'm not the Chosen One. I'm not some savior. Every time I touched the Force I felt the call of the Dark Side- and I don't know I could resist it now. I won't become you, Grandfather. I won't become another Darth Vader."

 

"You have your power for a reason- and that's not just to ignore its existence."

 

"I don't want it! If I could give it to someone else-" He stopped then.

 

"You wouldn't. It's part of you, Ben. I know how the Light and Dark wars within you, grandson. But I believe that happened for a reason- that when you find a way to bring balance to yourself, you will be able to bring it to the Force."

 

"If I haven't been able to do that by now, do you think I ever will be?"

 

Anakin smiled. "You're a Skywalker- and a Solo. What _can't_ you accomplish?" He looked at his grandson again. "You've tried to block yourself off from the Force, Ben. But it's still with you. You can still see and hear me. The Force isn't done with you yet- you still have a part to play."

 

As in response to Anakin's declaration, they both heard the plaintive whistle of a droid.

 

"A droid out here?" His blaster's charge had been exhausted long ago, but he had found a metal staff left behind by the girl. It was a bit short for him, but it would do in a pinch. Carefully, Ben walked out of the AT-AT.

 

The droid was small and spherical. For a moment, he felt a faint twinge of disappointment that it wasn't R2D2. "Hey, what's a droid like you doing out here all by yourself?" He understood binary, of course … but the droid's answer didn't make a lot of sense. "Telling me that it's classified and that someone is waiting for you isn't going to help us a lot if I don't know who you're waiting for. You're in too good a shape to be a castoff. No one would leave behind a droid as valuable as you are if they had a choice. What's your name? BB-8? Well, hello, BB8. My name? Ben. Just Ben. That's all you need to know. You won't last long outside, so you can come in. Tomorrow I'll take you to the Niima Outpost. If your friend is anywhere close by, that's where he would head. I'll get you to him and then the two of you can be on your own way."

 

 _Just one little act of compassion, Ben,_ he told himself. _It doesn't mean that you're ready to believe Anakin's wild theories that you're anything other than a tragic mistake._

 

The droid pressed against him like an animal seeking comfort from its master. Ben didn't object; he'd been practically raised by droids and had a soft spot for them. Besides, the little droid's power source provided some welcome heat on a cold Jakku night.

 

_That night he dreams about a beautiful girl in black with a pale face looking at him wide eyed and pleading. "I had to do it, Ben! Your past is holding you back! The only way to be who you're meant to be is to kill your past! If you can't do it, I'll do it for you! We belong together! I know you feel it just as much as I do! We belong together!"_

 

He woke up in a cold sweat, simultaneously fearing the girl and feeling a desperate desire to see her again. _It was just a dream, Solo. Jedi may have visions, but you're no Jedi._

 

But in his heart, he knew the girl was real. And he both dreaded and hoped for the day they would meet.

 

The next morning, Ben took the droid to Niima. He searched about with the little droid, but saw no sign of any stranger that he might belong to. Unkar Plutt, the local crimelord denied knowing anything about the droid's owner but made an outrageous offer for it … which was all the proof that Ben needed that the Crolute knew more than he was telling. Ben politely refused the offer and went on his way with the droid.

 

"You don't really think you're going to keep that droid do you, Ben?" Unkar had said after the human turned to depart. "The First Order is orbiting this planet. My gut tells me that this droid is what they're looking for. Give it to me and you can name your price."

 

"No sale, Plutt." He felt a stab of concern. _The First Order here? Why? What could be so important about Jakku that they had come to this out of the way world? Are they looking for me? No. That's impossible. No one knows I'm alive._ "And I think I'll pass on that, Unkar. The First Order is not something I want to get involved with. Come on, BB8."

 

"If you just used the Force Plutt would tell you everything," Anakin said as he appeared once more.

 

"I don't have to do that, Grandfather." He looked down at the droid who made an inquiring whistle. "All right, little guy. If the First Order is here, you and your friend must have been part of the Resistance. What was his or her name?" _Don't let it be Mom or Dad. Force, don't let it be Mom or Dad._

 

The droid beeped an answer.

 

"Poe Dameron?" He felt a sag of relief and then a stab of guilt. He'd grown up with Poe. They had been … not friends exactly … but Poe had been nicer to him than the other kids. He'd already become a first rate pilot before Ben was sent to the Academy.

 

"Poe's dead."

 

BB8 whistled in anguish and Ben whirled to see a handsome young black man wearing a Resistance Jacket. He had the dried out look of someone who just barely made it out of the Badlands alive. "We escaped from the First Order ship." The young man choked up. "He was my friend. I owe it to him to get that droid back to the Resistance. It's supposed to have a map that leads to Luke Skywalker."

 

"I told you the Force had plans for you, Ben," Anakin said with no small degree of satisfaction.

 

 


	3. Kyla Ren Again Naturally

Kyla Ren hated a lot of things.

 

She hated killing. She hated Jakku. She hated having to use her powers to rip knowledge out of unwilling minds.

 

Most of all, she hated herself.

 

Father had told her that killing would get easier. That she wasn't _destroying_ people. She was simply sending them on their way to rejoin the Force. And while it wasn't a pleasant thing to do, sometimes it was necessary to kill a few to save many more.

 

 _Father is wise,_ Kyle Ren told herself as she had so often. _If only I could fully give myself over to the power of the Dark Side! Then I would have no doubts in my mission._

 

But complete unity with the Dark Side continued to elude her.

 

_I will kill Luke Skywalker myself. When I have done that- when I have destroyed the last of the Jedi, then surely I will be one with the Dark Side. Just as Father wants me to be..._

 

The pilot was a brave man. Strong, in his fashion. Handsome, even.

 

 _Perhaps he should be the one,_ Kyla thought to herself. She had never known a man's touch- and while she certainly appreciated some of the more attractive men she had met over the years, she had never indulged. Father had not forbidden her- in fact he urged her to do so at some point- but something inside Kyla had refrained. _To bed a man and then take his life the following morning …_ _ **that**_ _would_ _ **have**_ _to make me stronger in the Dark Side …_

 

But the pilot wasn't the one she saw in her dreams. When would _he_ come to her? _When?_

 

Kyla sighed as she removed the mask. She hated the thing, but it was necessary. She still had not learned how to control her face so that it would betray the weakness that she felt when she killed someone directly or indirectly. She glanced in a mirror as she regarded herself:

 

Dark hair cut very short. A slender youthful face wet with the tears she had just shed. Expressive eyes she could never control.

 

_Why? Why do I feel this way? The ones I killed- some of them saw me starving as a child and would not offer me a crust of bread. Why does it feel like I'm doing wrong when Father tells me this is the right thing to do?_

 

_What do I have to do to make the pain stop?_

 

"Kyla Ren. This is General Hux. You are needed on the bridge."

 

"I'm on my way." She slipped the mask back and stalked her way back to the bridge. Once more she was the implacable dark Knight of the Ren that no one or nothing could touch.

 

Everyone made way for her in respect and fear. The one she valued more than the other, but she had long since accustomed herself to the idea that she would always be alone in a crowd. Fear was not acceptance, but at least it was not the rejection and bullying she had received as a child.

 

_Father has made me powerful. He gave me a home. I will give him the galaxy. Together, we will make sure that no one ever suffers again like we did. The price is worth it._

 

_It_ _**has** _ _to be worth it._

 

"Have you retrieved the droid, General?" Was the first thing she asked when she arrived on the bridge. "I told you; the droid contains the map to Luke Skywalker. We _must_ have it. Have you found it yet?"

 

"Not yet," Hux demurred. "We have a situation."

 

"A situation?"

 

"Captain Phasma will be the one to explain." General Hux glanced over at the other armored woman on the bridge with something like an appeal.

 

It amused Kyla. Hux was all fire and bluster when things were going his way, but the moment they turned south he was all too anxious to share the blame if he could not pass it on entirely. "Captain?"

 

"The prisoner has escaped."

 

"Escaped? How?" She fingered the light saber on her belt. "Father is depending on us to locate Luke Skywalker."

 

"A … trooper helped him escape. They commandeered a TIE fighter and made their way back to Jakku."

 

" _A trooper?_ Are you saying one of our storm troopers was a member of the Resistance all along?"

 

"Of course not," Phasma declared firmly. "He must have been … damaged in some way. I will see to his punishment when we retrieve them."

 

"Indeed." Kyla Ren felt strangely relieved that she would not have to face Poe Dameron again. Rooting around in his mind had shown her something that she did not much care for- a man sincerely believing his cause was right, a man willing to die for that cause. Wasn't that supposed to be how she felt? Why didn't she? "You say they returned to Jakku?"

 

"I am positive they mean to retrieve the droid."

 

"Search around Niima."

 

"Why there?" Phasma asked her. They weren't friends, but they weren't exactly enemies either. Neither one of them had much use for Hux.

 

"It's the one place the droid might be able to hide itself. And there are ships there. Something that could get them off world." Old memories flowed through her brain. "Speak with a man named Unkar Plutt. If anyone can find the droid, it's him." _And once that is done, perhaps I will repay him for some old debts of mine._

 

The anger she felt as she remembered Plutt helped block out her her guilt over the destroyed village. No part of her regretted the thought of killing _him._ But not yet .. not until they found the droid.

 

"The trooper?" Hux asked nervously. He did not like Kyla, but he was all too aware that she was the Supreme Leader's favorite. Angering her was a good way to end up dead. _If_ he was lucky.

 

"He has to die, of course." Father would be pleased at how nonchalantly she said that. "But Phasma has the right of it. I will leave his execution in her hands. We will need to make sure that the Resistance hasn't somehow managed to corrupt more of our troopers before we execute him. Father would not be pleased to discover the enemy within our ranks."

 

"I'll make sure he tells he everything he knows before he dies, Kyla Ren," Phasmsa said, and Kyla could tell that Phasma was smiling underneath her armor.

 

 _If only I had her dedication,_ Kyla thought sadly. _But I will make Father proud of me if I have to rip the Light out of the very roots of my soul!_


	4. No Longer A Solo Solo

"I can't believe we survived that!" Finn exclaimed. "You're almost as good a pilot as Poe!"

 

Ben smiled sadly, biting back the urge to say that he was a _better_ pilot than Poe Dameron. That old rivalry no longer mattered. "I _learned_ to fly on this ship. The only ones who know it better are my father and-" He cuts off before he can say Chewbacca's name. He's not ready to tell Finn who he is. He's not famous in of itself, but practically everyone in the galaxy know who Han Solo and Chewbacca the Wookie were.

 

"Your father? Was he back on Jakku?"

 

"No. Dad's never been good at staying in one place for very long. I wonder how she got to Jakku." He patted the ship's control console fondly. "That was some nice shooting back there."

 

"Thanks." Finn looked down at BB-8 for some reason.

 

"They sure teach you Resistance guys how to shoot, don't they?"

 

"I'm not part of the Resistance. I'm- I was a First Order Stormtrooper."

 

"You're kidding."

 

"What? No of course I'm not kidding. You don't think a Stormtrooper could desert?"

 

"No. I just never heard of a Stormtrooper who could shoot _straight._ " He smiled at the other man. Finn was probably a few years younger than him, so he felt almost like a big brother. "So if you were a Stormtrooper I take it that means you don't know where the Resistance base is?"

 

"No. Maybe the droid can tell us."

 

BB-8 looked at the two of them and whistled.

 

"Hey, we saved your butt," Ben said. "Well, your chassis anyway. If either Finn or I wanted to turn you over to the First Order we would have done so. I'm sorry about Poe, but the Resistance needs the data you're carrying about Luke Skywalker. And you're the only one who can get us there. Think it over. Finn, someone has been messing around in the guts of the _Fal_ \- this ship. I'm pretty sure I can fix it." Chewie had taught him everything he needed to know. "But it's going to take time." He rubbed his face ruefully. "And now that I finally have the water to spare, I _have_ to get rid of this beard. It's been driving me crazy for months. I'll take care of that and see if there's anything left in this ship to eat. Why don't you try to convince our little friend to help us?"

 

Ben ducked into his father's cabin … the cabin he shared with Ben's mother the last time he saw them. It was smaller than he remembered- everything on board the _Falcon_ was. The place had been ransacked, checked for any hidden credits, but Dad's clothing and shaving kit were still there as well as a holo. He picked up the holo and turned it on, knowing already what he would see:

 

His parents, Han and Leia, Luke Skywalker beside them, and Chewbacca looming behind them with a very young Ben Solo on his shoulders.

 

"Your father and uncle would be proud of you," Anakin said softly. "That was a nice bit of piloting. You barely used the Force at all."

 

"I _didn't_ use the Force."

 

"Not consciously, but you can't turn if off like a light saber, Ben. It's a part of you. You need to accept it."

 

"That never got me anywhere, Anakin." He walked into the refresher and striped off his shirt for a moment. "Mom would say I need a haircut." He searched and found his Dad's shaving kit. He shaved rapidly, knowing he didn't have that much time to waste. Sooner or later the First Order would be on their trail.

 

"She's right."

 

"When you have ears like mine the last thing you want is for people to see them." He finished off and slipped on his shirt. "There we go. I look almost human again."

 

"You're not even thirty years old yet, Ben. No one would think of you as old."

 

"I've lived lifetimes already, Anakin." He looked into the haunted eyes of his reflection again.

 

_He'd barely had time to relish the feeling of having Snoke out of his head for the first time since childhood when the First Order came to the Academy. So many soldiers … the students... the padawans... they fought, but not all of them. Some of them turned and struck down their fellow apprentices. Ben fought so hard to protect the younger ones, the wounded ones, but while he was buy protecting one, another was struck down … again and again._

 

_It was his fault. All his fault. Luke was gone, having gone for medical care after nearly giving himself a heart attack freeing Ben from Snoke's influence. He was a Skywalker, supposed to be a Jedi Knight. He was supposed to save them. Why couldn't he save them?_

 

_He just wasn't strong enough. The Light wasn't strong enough in him. He wasn't Luke. He wasn't even Anakin Skywalker. He couldn't save them._

 

_And then … when the last one fell … when Snoke himself began walking towards him … to take him back …_

 

_Ben threw down his light saber and ran._

 

He'd been running ever since.

 

"You did your best, Ben," Anakin said gently.

 

"I should have died with them."

 

"The first rule of a Jedi Knight is to preserve life- your life is no less valuable, no less worthy, than those you fought to protect. You fought as long as you had someone else to protect. Then it was your duty to save what you could- yourself. Your parents would understand, Ben. Luke would understand. Surviving doesn't make you a monster."

 

"Then why can't I stop feeling like one?" Ben slipped back on his shirt. "I'm not a Jedi, Anakin. I'm nothing now. Nobody."

 

And he walked back to the bridge.

 

….

 

"I'm trying, Ben, and I think he's coming around."

 

BB-8 whistled something noncommittally.

 

"BB-8, this is important-" Ben began.

 

The droid spun about and looked at him closer. _"Ileenium."_

 

"Ileenium. Good job, Finn."

 

" _Your mother has a holo of you on her desk."_

 

Ben shifted uncomfortably. "Thank you, BB-8."

 

_"She misses you, Ben Solo."_

 

"Thank you, BB-8," Ben said more firmly.

 

"I get the distinct feeling he's doing more than just giving you coordinates," Finn muttered.

 

"Our little droid friend is full of surprises." Ben turned back to the console and began working. "The good news is that I think BB-8's leaders will listen to us when we drop him off." _Mom's with the Resistance? What happened to her Senate seat?_

 

"I'm not sure I should be the one to deliver him. I mean, I _was_ with the First Order. I can't imagine the Resistance will welcome me with open arms."

 

"They should- if you want to stay. You're a good man, Finn."

 

"I'm a coward."

 

"A coward would have stayed behind. You deserted. You helped Poe. And you're still hoping Poe. That makes you a good man. There aren't so many of those around in the Galaxy that one is worth wasting. But if you don't want to stay, you can come with me." _Wait. Why did I say that?_

 

"You mean that?" Finn asked in surprise.

 

"Why not?" _Because I can barely be responsible for myself. Let alone another person …_

 

"Thanks, Ben." Finn grinned at him. He'd never had someone value him before.

 

"You should listen to yourself, Ben," Anakin said as he appeared again. "You're a good man, too. If only you'd let yourself see it."

 

"Shut up, old ghost," Ben whispered.

 

"What's that?" Finn asked him.

 

"Nothing." Ben flipped a toggle. "There that should ..." and the ship remained inert. "... do absolutely nothing, apparently."

 

And then it lurched.

 

"Wait! You did it!" Finn exclaimed. "We're moving!"

 

"Not under our own power," Ben replied. He knew the movements of this ship as well as he knew his own heartbeat. "Tractor beam has us." He slammed his hand against the console and a display came on. "Definitely a tractor beam."

 

"The First Order?" Finn's heart was pounding.

 

"Judging by the power signal, I don't think so. More like a freighter. Bigger than the Fal- our ship, but definitely not a warship." Ben sighed. "Though there would be two dozen people aboard it looking for easy salvage." Ben darkened for a moment. "Or they might have a grudge."

 

"Against you?"

 

"Against Dad. They'd recognize the ship and know it for his." _I can't protect myself. How can I protect Finn?_

 

"You have the Force, Ben. You know that you're in no danger here. Not from a ship of that size," Anakin said patiently. "If only you'd use it."

 

"Give it a rest,Anakin," Ben whispered again.

 

"Um, Ben?" Finn looked at him worriedly. "You know you're talking to someone who isn't there, right? I mean, there's just you, me, and BB-8."

 

"Don't mind me, Finn. I've just been on my own a long time. I got in the habit of talking to myself because there was nobody else around." He glared at the ghost of his grandfather who gave him an insolent smirk. "Dad has some hidden holds that are sensor proof. We can hide there and pick them off one by one if necessary. Come on."

 

They barely had time to get hidden before the door opened and Ben heard a familiar voice. One he hadn't heard in years- but one that he would never forget.

 

"We found it, Chewie," Han Solo murmured. "We're home."

 

Chewbacca roared.

 

"Wait? What do you mean the ship smells like-?"

 

With a sigh, Ben opened up his hiding place. It's not like Han wouldn't be able to find him anyway. "Hello, Dad."

 

Han Solo gasped. "Ben?"

 

"Yes. It's me. I'm real, Dad. It's Ben."

 

"Ben." And for the first time, Ben Solo saw his father as an old man. The older Solo tottered over to him and grabbed his face. "The face of my son. Ben … Ben. I thought you were dead, Ben. Your mother thought you were dead. Where have you been? Who held you captive?"

 

 _"Ben!"_ Chewbacca roared and embraced both Solos in a fiercely welcoming grip.

 

"I missed you too, Chewie," Ben said when he could breathe again. His eyes filled with tears. _Damn it. I can't cry now. I'm a grown man for Force's sake. I can't cry in front of Dad._

 

Han Solo, however, was clutching Ben tightly and unashamedly crying. "Oh, Ben. I thought you were dead... what happened?"

 

Finn coughed.

 

"I ran, Dad. I never stopped running." Ben reluctantly let go of his father. "Dad, this is Finn. A good friend of mine. Finn, this is Han Solo and Chewbacca."

 

"Wait a minute. _Han Solo and Chewbacca?_ " Finn's eyes grew in surprise. "Your _Dad_ is Han Solo?"

 

"Yes. I'm Ben Solo."

 

"And this is the _Millennium Falcon?"_ Finn stared at them as though they were legends come to life … and Ben had to admit that was pretty much true for his father and uncle. "And the stories- about the Death Star, Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker, the Force-"

 

"It's true, all of it," Han interrupted. "But we don't have time to go over my autobiography, kid. Chewie and I have a delivery to make. After that, I'm taking my son to his mother and you anywhere you want to go—"

 

"Mom's on Ileenium. She's with the Resistance. Did you know that?"

 

"Yes. I knew." Han's eyes closed for a moment. "We still keep in touch. When we can."

 

"Keep in touch?" What had happened to his parents? They had been still together when he left. _Oh Kriff. Am I responsible for breaking up my parents' marriage too?_

 

"A lot's happened since you were gone, Ben. Luke right after we got to the Academy. Your mother and I have kind of gone our … separate ways."

 

"Did you know about this?" Ben demanded of Anakin who stood nearby silently smirking.

 

"Who are you talking to?" Finn demanded. "Of course I didn't know about it!"

 

"Ben is a Jedi Knight," Han declared proudly. "He's probably talking to Master Yoda or Obi Wan Kenobi."

 

"You might not want to tell him," Anakin said with a smirk. "He'd probably jump out of his skin."

 

Finn gaped. "Ben is a Jedi Knight?!"

 

"I am not a Jedi Knight. The only Jedi left is Luke Skywalker. That's why we've got to get BB-8 back to the Resistance. Maybe Luke can help defeat the First Order- I sure as kriff can't. Don't look at me as some kind of savior, Finn."

 

"Maybe not," Finn said with a smile. "But I can tell you're a good man- and I've heard those are too rare in the Galaxy to waste."

 

"A wise man told you that?" Ben asked him with a twinkle in his eye.

 

"Scruffy nerfherder, actually. But the statement is still true."

 

And then freighter lurched.

 

"Oh Kriff," Han muttered. "They found us."

 

"Who found you?" Ben asked.

 

"Guys I owe money to."

 

"There are guys in the galaxy that you don't owe money to?" Ben asked in amusement.

 

"These guys are special. The Guavian Death Gang and Kanjiklub." Han gestured. "I needed money for this freighter. I should be able to pay them off once I deliver the rathtars."

 

"You have rathtars on board?" Finn asked with a horrified look on his face.

 

"Force!" Ben swore. "Dad, that's insane. You borrow money from two of the most dangerous gangs in the galaxy _and_ you're caring live rathtars? What were you thinking?"

 

"Life had gotten dull," Han said with a shrug. "I needed something to keep busy.

 

 _"He was lost without you, Ben._ " Chewbacca growled.

 

"That's enough out of you!" Han snapped at his long time friend. Han thought for a moment. "Okay. This is no problem. Ben can just use the Jedi mind trick"- Han wiggles his fingers- "and make them let us go."

 

"Um, no I can't. I swore off using the Force, Dad. It's too dangerous for me to use."

 

"Since when?!" Han demanded.

 

"Since the Jedi Academy went up in flames."

 

Han looked deeply into his son's eyes, and saw the misery there. "Okay. You and Finn hide then. Chewie and I will handle this. We'll talk our way out of this. We've done it before."

 

Ben had a sudden mental image of his elderly father and his Wookie uncle being gunned down by men who had no patience for his patter. He reached over and yanked the blaster out of his father's belt. "Kriff to that. You need backup. Finn, you can hide in the hold. You'll be safe there."

 

"Not gonna happen," Finn declared. _Am I insane?_ "I'm with you."

 

"You don't owe us anything, kid," Han warned him. "This could get dicey."

 

"Ben's my friend," Finn said as if that was all the explanation he needed to give. "Let's get this done."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm trying not to redo the ENTIRE movie. Just the Ben and Rey bits that appeal to me, mostly. :D Since Ben WASN'T a pretty girl I figured that Finn had no reason to lie about being an ex-Stormtrooper.


	5. Daddy's Girl

Starkiller Base.

 

Rey hated this place. She respected the power- respected what the First Order had accomplished with it- but she also dreaded what it could be used for. What it _would_ be used for. Father said it was necessary, but something in her recoiled from the idea of using a power so destructive that it would wipe out entire star systems.

 

Father was not present. If he had been, she would have hugged him once more. She knew that other people saw Father being deformed and ugly, but to her he was _home_. He was the only warmth she had ever known- and whenever she was confused a few moments with him would renew her dedication to the First Order.

 

But he wasn't present. He was simply a larger than life holographic presentation. Men like Hux expected such theatrics. It made him easier to deal with, and however annoying Hux was, Father found him to be useful enough to indulge him in this.

 

Father was always very good at knowing how to handle people.

 

"And so this rogue Storm trooper escaped with the droid with the aid of some desert hermit who just happened to be a master pilot." Father's voice was smooth, but there was a hint of anger in him.

 

"Yes, Father." Kyla had difficulty believing that herself. She had wanted to go down and investigate herself. She knew that Plutt would be able to tell her more about this hermit- none of the men and women who had lived there during her time on Jakku would have been capable of such feats. That meant little, though; a lot could change in six years. "I still believe that if I might return to Jakku I might be able to learn more of his hermit."

 

"Some scavenger from the desert is of no concern to us now," Hux said snidely.

 

Kyla turned and looked at the General. Her fingers twitched for her light saber. Hux did not know of her past- he knew that she was the adopted daughter of Snoke and had his favor more than anyone else in the First Order. He also knew that she was quite capable of murdering him with that ridiculous laser sword if he gave her a chance.

 

"Enough, daughter. I have need of the general. Hux, is the weapon ready?"

 

"You have but to give the order, Supreme Leader. Might I suggest targeting the Hosnian Prime System?" The General smiled thinly. "The majority of the Republic fleet is currently stationed there. In one swift stroke we could decapitate both the Republic's government and its military."

 

"Your suggestion has merit, General," Father said in his soft voice.

 

"Father!" Kyla Ren forced down her shock at the thought of killing that many people. "Surely we have but to just _demonstrate_ the power of the Starkiller weapon on an uninhabited star system and the Republic would willingly surrender. An attack that kills so many ..."

 

"Is necessary, my daughter." Father seemed suddenly sad about the situation. "I do not relish causing so many deaths, Kyla Ren, but you must know that a war between the First Order and the Republic would eventually cause many more deaths. We might even _lose_ and then the Galaxy would never know the peace we can bring to it. Sometimes it is necessary to take lives to save them as you well know."

 

Kyla bowed her head. "Yes, Father."

 

"Go, Hux. Make your preparations. I would speak with my daughter in private."

 

"Yes, Supreme Leader." Hux bowed and scurried out of the throne room like the loathsome rodent he was.

 

"Father." Kyla knelt. She knew she had disappointed her Father yet again. When would this foolish compassion leave her? It caused her nothing but pain.

 

"Be at peace, daughter. I know your strengths and your weaknesses. You are my beloved Kyla Ren, and nothing will ever make make stop loving you, my daughter."

 

Father was so tolerant of her many failings … what did she do to deserve him?

 

"However, it is imperative that we retrieve the droid and kill Luke Skywalker. If Skywalker returns, the Jedi could rise again … and then all of our hard work for those long years … all the sacrifices you and I have made … will be for nothing. That cannot be allowed to happen." Father paused. "I have felt an awakening in the Force. It is possible that Skywalker- or some new enemy- might be on the horizon. We simply must make sure the Jedi remain in the past if the Galaxy is to have a future."

 

"I understand, Father."

 

"Daughter, I do not entirely trust General Hux. He has some talent- enough to be useful- but he fancies himself my logical successor- not you. I have seen you in his mind- an obstacle to be overcome."

 

Kyla's blood-red saber ignited in her hands. "I will kill him."

 

"No, Kyla. He is of use to us." Father paused. "However, I will require your blade to be used in my service on someone else."

 

"I am at your command, Father." She forced herself to remain calm. Father was generous with his forgiveness; she must not fail him again!

 

"I have learned more than what I told General Hux." Kyla felt a warm glow of pride as Father prepared to share his wisdom and knowledge with her once more. "A legend has returned; the ship that our rogue Trooper escaped on was the _Millennium Falcon_ and it has been reclaimed by the infamous Han Solo. The man is old and does not know the Force as we do, but his wife is the sister of Luke Skywalker- and she heads the Resistance. If he should deliver the droid to Leia Organa then she might very well find her brother before we can and the disaster that we fear might yet come upon us all. That is why I authorized General Hux's request. We cannot afford to let our enemies have such a powerful force as the Republic fleet behind it."

 

"I understand, Father."

 

"Han Solo must die. We must make sure that that Leia Organa and the Resistance does not find Luke Skywalker. We cannot allow him to deliver that droid. We cannot allow Han Solo or the Resistance to find Luke Skywalker before we do."

 

"I will not fail you, Father. I will find Han Solo and I will kill him. And I will bring the droid back to you."

 

"I trust that you will, my beloved daughter. Now go- bring me the droid and bring me the head of Han Solo."

 

"As you wish, Father." Kyla bowed to him once more, and she walked out.

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rey is not the kind of person who would bow to anyone out of fear- but love? Yes. I certainly think that she might out of love and respect. I also see Snoke as being a master manipulator, able to give or withhold affection as the situation called for it. It's also entirely possible that he might even be fond of Rey- though this will not be a Snoke Redemption story.


	6. Lonely Girls and Lost Boys

You handled yourself pretty well back there," Han said as he looked at his son. They were back in the cockpit of the _Falcon._ They could hear Chewbacca protesting as Finn worked on bandaging the Wookie's injured arm.

 

"I've had practice." Ben willed his breathing to slow down.

 

Han stared at this boy … no, his son was a grown man now. "Ben, I don't have to be a Jedi to know that something is wrong. Tell me, son. What happened? What kept you away from your family all these years?"

 

"Tell him," Anakin said gently. "Tell him the truth."

 

And he did. He told them of the First Order's appearance. Of the way some of the students turned. Of Snoke's appearance and the way he ran ...

 

"They died, Dad. The Jedi Academy students. They died. I fought .. but I wasn't good enough. I wasn't strong enough. And if Uncle Luke hadn't tried to help me- if I had never gone there- they would be alive now. I bring death to everyone." Ben hated himself for the way his voice shook. The way the tears fought to fall down his face. "It's all my fault ..."

 

His father had seen wars. He had faced Darth Vader. He had risked his life to save Uncle Luke. He wouldn't understand these feelings …

 

"Son... Ben." Han grabbed his boy's face between his hands. "You didn't do anything wrong. You didn't bring Snoke there. You said it yourself. Some of the students had already turned. You didn't do it, Ben. This isn't on your head, do you hear me? _It's not your fault."_

 

"I ran ..."

 

"Survivor's guilt, Ben. I know how that feels. It eats you up. What if I had done something different. What if I fought a little longer, what if I had fought a little harder. What if I had done this or that. It's the nature of war, son. People live … and people die. You're alive because you ran. Who knows what would have happened to you if you stayed?"

 

"Maybe you'll listen to your father, Ben." Anakin sighed sadly, seeming somehow much older than his youthful appearance.

 

"What happened after, Ben? Why didn't you come home?"

 

"I … couldn't. I couldn't face Mom … and you." He closed his eyes. "I've spent the last six years growing up. I didn't have you and Mom to bail me out. I didn't have ID. Fortunately, you taught me how to pilot, and there are always people out there willing to take on someone to fly a ship without asking too many questions."

 

"You became a smuggler!" Han couldn't stop himself from grinning.

 

"Yes. I finally managed to save up enough credits to buy my own ship. She wasn't much, but she took me where I needed to go. I was heading for the Outer Rim when the engine finally went out. I barely made it to Jakku. For the last month or so I've been living as a scavenger there, trying to get enough credits together to buy a ship or at least passage off Jakku."

 

"Well, the Falcon isn't going to be able to make it to the Resistance base. We need to get another ship, one without a known transponder signal, to get to the Resistance. It's not a whole map to Luke, but it'll have to do."

 

"What happened to Uncle Luke?"

 

"He … left. He blamed himself for the Academy."

 

"That's crazy. It wasn't his fault. It was mine."

 

"Taking the blame for things you have no control over seems to be a Skywalker family fault, Ben." Han clapped a hand on his shoulder. "Once we find him, I'm sure he'll be glad to see you and finish your training."

 

"I'm not going back, Dad. Not to the Jedi. That's not what I am."

 

"All right," Han said.

 

"You're going to accept that?"

 

"You're a man now, Ben. I'm not going to try to force you into becoming something you don't want to be. You owe it to your mother to see her again. Once you do that, I'll take you wherever you want to go." He paused. "If you want, you can stay with Chewie and me on the _Falcon_. We could even do some legitimate trade. Something that will give me time to enjoy having my son back."

 

"Thanks, Dad. That doesn't bad at all." He paused. "If Finn doesn't want to stay with the Resistance, I told him he could travel with me if he chooses."

 

"If you want him with us, he's in."

 

"Thanks, Dad."

 

There was so much more Ben wanted to say … so much more Han wanted to say... but the two of them knew in that moment they didn't need words. They just sat together.

 

"I think Chewbacca has settled down," Finn said as he came back into the cockpit. "So onto the Resistance base?"

 

"We need a new ship for that. One that the First Order won't have the signature for. We're headed to Takodana for that. If anyone can help us it's Maz Kanata."

 

"Maz is wise," Anakin said. "Maybe she can help you find what you're looking for, Ben."

 

"You're not going to try to convince me to return to the Jedi?"

 

"We already talked about that, son..."

 

"I wasn't talking to you, Dad."

 

"Oh." Han muttered something derogatory about ghosts and punched in the coordinates for Takodana.

 

….

 

Maz's castle was every bit as colorful as Ben had remembered. He watched with some amusement as Finn looked around, spinning in place as though trying to take in everything at once. "Don't worry, Finn. You've got the rest of your life to check out the sites like this. There are places even more amazing to see."

 

"If the First Order lets us live to see them, Ben," Finn murmured. _Do I tell Ben about the Starkiller? Maybe Han?_

 

"They will fall," Ben said. _Dad and Mom and Uncle Luke took down the Empire. Once we find Uncle Luke they can handle the First Order._

 

"I hope you're right." Finn looked around some more. "I'm hungry. You mind if I go get something to eat?"

 

"Go ahead. If you can't find us, head back to the _Falcon._ We won't leave without you." He clasped the younger man's shoulder. "Enjoy yourself for once, Finn."

 

"You should take your own advice, Ben. You're attracting some attention."

 

"I am?" He looked around.

 

"Force, yes. I've seen three women and at least five guys checking you out. Maybe you should … ahem.. relieve some tension while your Dad works out the deal with this Maz person."

 

"Don't think it will take _that_ long." Ben looked around. He _was_ being looked at. He didn't have any experience romantically- he was always moving ahead. Meeting someone might have made that harder. "Go on, Finn. I'll see you later."

 

And then he heard a girl crying.

 

The sound tore his heart. He looked around. Why wasn't someone else reacting? Didn't they care?

 

"I'm coming!" Ben called out, working his way through the crowds, deeper into the castle itself. Finally, the crying stops, and he's in a chamber filled with artifacts and curios.

 

"Can you sense it, Ben?" Anakin asked him softly.

 

"I senses … something."

 

As though he were in a trance, Ben made his way to the wooden chest and opened it:

 

A light saber.

 

He hadn't held one in his hands since that day he had ran from the Jedi Academy. He was struck by a sudden desire, an intense _need_ , to touch it.

 

So he did.

 

_Anakin Skywalker … no, not Anakin …_ _**Darth Vader** _ _… murdering_ _**children** _ _… Darth Vader and Luke fighting in Cloud City … Luke's metallic hand touching R2D2 … Ben himself fleeing the burning Jedi Academy … surrounded by dark clad men and women with one of them reaching out for him... a terrified young girl screaming for her parents as they abandon her to Unkar Plutt … and then the same woman, all in black, but with pale and beautiful face bare, her eyes pleading with him as she holds her hand out to him … the Dark Side burning inside him like an inferno …_

 

With a gasp, Ben let go of the saber. "You knew!" he screamed at Anakin Skywalker. "You knew what it was! You knew what it would do to me!"

 

"Anakin did nothing, Ben. It called to you."

 

Maz.

 

She looked at him.

 

"You know me?" He had seen her once, but he had been a child then. A whiny petulant boy. "Of course you do. I shouldn't have come in here. I'm sorry."

 

"You came to save the girl."

 

"There was no girl. It was an illusion. Anakin tricked me."

 

"That wasn't me, Ben," Anakin said gently. "The Force spoke to you. It wanted you to hear that girl. It wanted you to find this place."

 

"You blame yourself, Ben Solo. You blame yourself for surviving. You blame yourself for not being able to save them. You couldn't save them. You never could have saved them no matter how hard you had fought." She paused. "But there's someone who still needs you, Ben Solo. Someone who can come back- with your help."

 

"No," Ben said through his tears. "I can't. I'm fated to bring death- not salvation."

 

"That was Luke Skywalker's light saber. And his father's before him. It called out to you, Ben. I am no Jedi, but know the Force. It moves through and surrounds everything. Close your eyes. Feel it. The Light. The Dark. It's still there. Let it help you. Let it guide you. Take the saber."

 

"No!" Ben swore. "Darth Vader was a monster! He murdered people with that light saber! I won't take it! I won't become another Darth Vader! I won't touch it. I won't take it. I won't ever use the Force again!"

 

And as he had done once before, Ben ran.

 

….

 

Cold dread filled Han Solo's chest as he saw that terrible light. He was no Jedi, but he could feel a raw terror that reminded him of the Death Star as he saw that strange phantom light. "What the hell just happened?"

 

"The First Order," Finn said, rushing forward. "They did it. They used the Starkiller."

 

 _"The Hosnian System is gone!"_ Chewbacca roared, shoving the ponpin that linked to the _Falcon's_ stellar navigation system _._

 

"We have to get out of here," Han decided. "The Resistance needs that droid now more than ever. Where's Ben?"

 

"I went to get something to eat. I thought he was coming back to you."

 

 _No. Not again._ He couldn't lose Ben again.

 

"Han, Finn, Chewie. Come with me." Maz appeared again as she had a way of doing so.

 

"Maz, where's my son?!" Han wasn't too proud to beg anymore. Not where his boy was concerned.

 

"Come with me." She led them into the chamber where Ben had left her. She grabbed the light saber and handed it to Finn. "Your friend is danger. Take it- and find Ben."

 

And then the castle shuddered.

 

"The First Order," Maz said with a sigh. "They're here."

 

…

 

_An entire star system had vanished. He heard the sudden terror and the final oblivion of so many lives …_

 

Ben knelt on the ground, shaking, throwing up. "So much death ..."

 

BB-8 had followed him. The droid beeped at him urgently.

 

"No, go back to Dad and the others. Tell them I'm sorry. I can't do this. I _can't_. So much death. I can't handle it. I can't live through that again. I'm sorry, BB-8. I'm sorry."

 

Before he could add anything, before the droid could argue, he felt the shifting of the atmosphere that occurred when he massive ships moved through the air. He looked up and saw the First Order ships filling the sky like black rain.

 

"The Castle. Finn. Chewie. Dad!"

 

And Ben Solo ran again … but this time _towards_ something. "BB-8, go on without me. You're smaller. You can get through and warn them in case I can't. No arguments- go!"

 

And with a squeal of protest, the droid fled.

 

He fired at the Stormtroopers as he made his way back to the castle.

 

"Ben, if you just would use the Force-" Anakin said exasperatedly.

 

"Shut up!"

 

And that's when he saw _her._

 

The woman from his dreams armed with a blood red light saber of an ancient design he'd only seen in books. She was short, but that did not detract from her menace. Ben Solo knew _exactly_ what a light saber could do to human flesh, and he had no doubt that woman would have no qualms in giving him a personal experience.

 

"I don't want to hurt you," Ben warned the woman. "Get the hell away from me."

 

The dark woman continued to advance.

 

Reluctantly, Ben fired.

 

He wasn't entirely surprised that she was able to deflect each blast. But still he kept firing, hoping for that one in a million shot that might save his life …

 

"The Force, Ben," Anakin pleaded. " _Please._ "

 

The woman stopped.

 

"She sees me?!" Anakin gasped in amazement. "She sees me!"

 

The woman raised her arm –

 

And Anakin vanished.

 

Ben gaped in surprise. "No!"

 

The woman gestured again and his arm was pulled down to his side as though it had been welded there. He tried to fight it, but mortal strength wasn't enough.

 

The Force whispered temptingly in his ear. Dark or Light, he didn't know which.

 

So he resisted it even as he fought the woman's power.

 

"A powerful Force spirit stood at your side, urging you to use the Force. I can feel your strength. Your power. So much Dark. So much Light. It's like a storm inside you- but you resist your power as you fight me."

 

"Let me go or I'll destroy you."

 

That surprised Kyla Ren.

 

Oh, every now and then someone promised her destruction before she killed them. She was accustomed to threats. But this wasn't a threat.

 

This was a _plea._

 

"You're afraid for _me._ You fear yourself more than you fear death at my hands. That is interesting." She raised her light saber to look into his face.

 

And saw the _man_ who haunted her dreams!

 

He was _real._ And he was here.

 

She wanted to devour him. She wanted to take him right there in these cold woods. Strip off their clothing and burn herself into him, steal the Darkness from him to temper the Light that would never leave her.

 

She wanted him so much.

 

She reached out with her mind. She felt his resistance … and a primal attraction. "You feel it too. You feel me as much as I do you. Who are you?" She reached deeper.

 

"Stop," Ben pleaded. "You won't like what you'll find."

 

"Oh I think I like it very much." Filled with desire- whether to kiss him or kill him she didn't know which, Kyla seized his face and drove her mind into his.

 

He fought back. He had training. She could see that. But even in this extreme situation he refused to call upon the power that was his birthright. And then … then she found what she so desperately wanted: His name.

 

"You're Ben Solo. You're alive!" She frowned underneath her mask. "And you have the map in your mind."

Anger lashed through him at being violated like this- like _Snoke-_ and he reached into her mind. "You're her! You're the girl! I heard you scream! I heard you cry!"

 

She stared at him in surprise, breaking the link. "That girl is dead. Someone stronger replaced her. Someone better."

 

"I don't believe that," Ben whispered.

 

"Kyla Ren!" a First Order rushed forward. "Resistance Fighters! We're not prepared for a counter attack!"

 

"Sleep," Kyla told Ben, reaching through the Force.

 

"No!" Ben shook off the command.

 

Kyla's eyes widened in surprise behind her helmet. "So strong. Set blasters to stun and shoot him."

 

"No!" Ben cried, but he could do nothing and oblivion claimed him as a blaster bolt struck him.

 

Kyla picked him up off the ground, the Force giving her the strength as it always had. "Pull our troops out. We have what we need."

 

And carrying him as though he weighed no more than a child, Kyla Ren took her prize towards her ship.

 

….

 

Finn ran. He'd run before. He knew he would run again. But this time … this time he was running towards a man who had offered him friendship with no strings attached. A man who knew him for what he was and had accepted him anyway. A man who had offered him something more than duty.

 

 

"Ben! Ben!"

 

Han and Chewbacca came up to him, the old man shuddering as though his heart would burst. "Ben!"

 

Chewbacca roared in fury. " _They took him!"_

 

"Yes," Maz said gently. "They have Ben. But he's alive. I promise you that, Han. Ben is alive. You need to get the droid to the resistance, Han."

 

"I need to go after my son! I won't leave him behind! Not again! NEVER again!"

 

"You'll die if you attack them now, Han. You know Ben wouldn't know that. Go to your wife. Tell her that Ben is alive. Tell her that your son needs you both now."

 

"Leia," Ben whispered in a voice filled with the longing of a young man tinged with the regret of an old one. "Leia. She'll think of something. Come on, Chewie. We have to get to Leia if we're going to save Ben."

 

Finn stared desolately at the sky. "Ben ..."

 

"Finn?"

 

"Come with us. We're going to save him. We're going to save him." And Finn grabbed the younger man's arm and pulled them towards him. "Let's go!"

 

And they went.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And at last they meet! :D


	7. Lovers Old and New

Han Solo walked as though he were a young man again. Fire filled his veins. The burning determination to get his son back. Right now, the Resistance was thwarting his desire.

 

The skies were alive with the Resistance Fleet. Any First Order ship that had not retreated had been totally destroyed. Any ship trying to rise now without Resistance permission would be blown out of the sky.

 

"Finn, get that droid to someone in the Resistance. Chewie and I will get _Falcon_ prepped and ready. I'll give you half an hour to get back or we'll lift off without you."

 

Finn gaped at him for a moment. "Han … we'll never make it if we don't get authorization. Even the _Falcon_ can't get through that many ships."

 

"Half an hour, Finn. Those kriffing monsters have my son and nothing is going to keep me from him this time! I'll blow up the whole damn Resistance Fleet if I have to."

 

 _"Han."_ Chewie laid a hand on his old friend's soldier. _"I love Ben too. I would give my life for him if it would keep him safe. But we won't help him if we're shot out of the sky."_

"I left _him,_ Chewie!" Han sobbed. "Remember how he begged us- begged _me_ \- not to make him stay at the Academy? I told him he was almost a grown man and that he had to stop being a baby. Those were the last words I said to my son, Chewie! The last things he ever heard me say! I kept thinking my son died thinking I hated him!"

 

_Going back to the Academy with Luke … with Leia … searching for Ben … first to save him … then to bury him … looking through charred bodies … dismembered bodies … finding nothing of Ben but a charred calligraphy book and his training light saber …_

 

_"Could he have turned?" Leia had asked softly. "Could Ben have done this?"_

 

_And Han had been almost speechless with rage after that accusation hung in the air._

 

_"No," Luke had replied shakily. "He was free of Snoke. There was still Dark in him, but Ben didn't turn. He …. he died free."_

 

_"Dead?" Han had demanded. "You're sure, Luke?!"_

 

_"I can't sense him in the Force. Even if he had turned, I would still sense him. He's gone, Han. I'm sorry."_

_"You're sorry?! You should be sorry! We brought him to you for help- and_ _**this** _ _is what happened! You got my son killed, Luke! You and Lea both!" He had turned his anger, hurt filled gaze to his wife. "I didn't want this for Ben, but I let you talk me into this, Leia! You were so sure of yourself- so sure this was the right thing to do! You killed our son, Leia! You_ _**killed** _ _our son!"_

 

_Hateful words. Hurtful words. He had regretted them as soon as he said them, but he hadn't been able to take them back. His boy was gone, and all he could think of was that Ben would still be alive if he hadn't listened to Luke and Leia._

 

_Things had never been the same after that. His smuggling trips became longer and longer, and eventually he stopped coming back._

 

_And Leia stopped waiting._

 

 _"Ben's alive, Han,_ " Chewie said, trying to free his friend from the cage of memory. _"Look. That transport has to be where the CO of this operation is. We'll talk to them. They can give us clearance."_

 

"All right, Chewie. Thanks."

 

The first they spotted was the golden droid that had been a part of their life so long ago. "Han Solo! Master Solo! It's good to see you. You're probably wondering about my red arm ..."

 

"She's here, isn't she?"

 

"Princ- General Organa? Of course, sir. I can take you to her."

 

"Do it."

 

Finn started to go after them when BB-8 squealed in delight and began moving towards the X-Wing pilots at top speed. "BB-8! Wait up! Where are you going?"

 

And then he saw the pilot the droid was heading for. "Poe? Poe!" And he ran racing towards the pilot.

 

"Finn?!" Poe had wrapped his arms around the younger man in an enthusiastic bear hug. The two of them pounded each other's backs.

 

"You made it!" They both said at the same time and laughed.

 

"Long story. Was ejected from the fighter. Met a trader who eventually got back to the Resistance." He patted the head of his beloved droid. "BB-8 says you've been taking care of him."

 

"I wasn't the only one, Poe." He paused for a moment. _I have to tell them. I just hope that it can do them some good._ "Poe, I know what caused the destruction. I can tell them about it- and I think it's where they might have taken Ben."

 

"Ben?"

 

"A friend of mine. He helped me get BB-8 off Jakku." Finn paused. "Ben Solo."

 

"Ben's alive?" Poe gaped at him in surprise.

 

"You know Ben?"

 

"Yeah. We grew up together. Weird kid."

 

"He's a good guy," Finn said defensively. "He saved my life."

 

Finn frowned. _I am not jealous of Ben Solo. I_ _ **refuse**_ _to be jealous of Ben Solo._ "Where is he? I'm sure his mother'll be glad to see him."

 

Leia had never spoken of Ben Solo since she returned from the ruined Jedi Academy to Poe. As far as he knew, she had never spoken of Ben to _anyone_.

 

"All right, then. Let's go see the General."

 

Finn and Poe made it to Han's side just as Leia Organa finally descended out of the transport. She looked them all over. Smiling and nodding.

 

She wore Ben Solo's training light saber on her belt.

 

"Han," Leia said. "Chewie." She stared at them. Unsure of what to do or say.

 

Chewie broke the tension by rushing up to Leia and giving her a fond Wookie hug. When he finally let her go, she turned to face Han.

 

"You've changed your hair," he said.

 

"You're wearing the same jacket."

 

"New jacket." Han looked at the saber on Leia's belt. "Leia … _Ben's_ alive."

 

She blinked at him. "That's impossible."

 

"It's true! I saw him! Hell, he came here with us!"

 

"Where is he?" As always, Leia's voice was controlled, but there was a current of longing … of a mother to see her long lost son again.

 

"He's gone. The First Order took him. I need clearance to go after him." He paused. "And your help."

 

"It'll have to wait, Han. We have to secure the planet. I can't spare the resources-"

 

"I've waited six years for my son! I'm not waiting any longer! I'll go through your whole kriffing fleet if that's what it takes, Leia!"

 

"Han-"

 

"General, with all due respect Finn here has some news that might help you both out. Tell her, Finn."

 

"You're Finn." Leia smiled at the younger man. "I've heard about you. You're the Stormtrooper who defected and helped Poe escaped. I'm glad to see you survived. Poe wasn't sure that you'd made it-"

 

"I did thank to Ben- and Han and Chewie. We've got BB-8 and he has the map to Luke Skywalker."

 

"Not all of it," Han told her. "It's incomplete."

 

"That's good," Leia said. "Even if they force-" her voice broke off. "He can't give it away."

 

"Say his name!" Han roared suddenly. "He's your son too! Don't you think you owe it to him to save his name now?"

 

"I can't!" Leia screamed back. "I can't because I'll fall apart if I let myself think about my baby in the hands of the First Order! I can't do that now, Han! I have to lead!" She looked at Finn and then continued as if her outburst had not happened. "Go ahead, Finn. You had something else to say?"

 

"Yes. I know about the weapon that the First Order used. I know where it is- and I think that's where they took, Ben ..."

 

_..**.._

 

_Elsewhere …_

 

Ben Solo awoke and did not know where he was … except that he was in restraints.

 

And she was watching him.

 

"Hello, Ben Solo."

 

"I don't know who that is," he lied with an ease that would have done his father proud. "Are you going to let me go? I don't normally like for a girl to chain me up till the third date ..."

 

"You have never lain with a woman."

 

"How would you know?"

 

"I know all about you, Ben Solo." She leisurely walked towards him. She was almost a foot shorter than he was, but he could feel the power burning off her- somehow even now – now that he knew what she was- it still had so much Light. "Father used to tell me about his most favored student. The one he intended to raise up to greatness … who ran like a frightened child from the power offered him."

 

Ben felt a chill. "Your Father..."

 

"Is Supreme Leader Snoke. Yes. He took me in. He raised me up. He gave me everything I have. It is his destiny to bring peace to the galaxy- and mine to rule beside him."

 

"Snoke doesn't share power. He _takes_ it. Just like he took you."

 

"He _saved_ me! He could have saved you if you hadn't been so afraid." She stared at him. 'Tell me about the droid."

 

"Take off your mask."

 

"Why?"

 

"I want to see you." And without quite knowing how he knew it, "And you want me to see you too."

 

Hesitantly- shyly- Kyla Ren removed her helmet. She shook her hair out and let her hood fall to her shoulders.

 

It was _her._ The pale beautiful woman from his dreams.

 

"Force, you're beautiful," Ben breathed.

 

A faint blush added some color to those now-pale cheeks. "Thank you." She walked towards him. She lowered her face to where she was almost kissing him. "Tell me about the droid, Ben."

 

"It's a BB unit with a selenium drive, thermal hyperscan vindicator-"

 

"I know that," she said as she suddenly- and somehow terrifyingly- _licked_ his cheek. "It has the last part of a star map we need, Ben. A map that will lead us to Luke Skywalker. I'm impressed the droid showed it to you. Have you been working for the Resistance all these years?"

 

"Nothing so glamorous. Bit of this. Bit of that. Lately, I've been doing some scavenging on Jakku."

 

"Jakku..." she whispered. "How I hate that place."

 

"You've been there?"

 

"I was abandoned there by my parents." She kissed his forehead. Then she brushed her lips against his … "You're so warm, Ben ..."

 

"Please. Don't do this. You don't know what could happen if I lost control-"

 

"Tell me what I want to know and I'll stop. I'll even let you do things to _me_. You'd like that, Ben. I can tell."

 

He could feel her mind slipping past his defenses as though they weren't there … as though something inside of him was _inviting_ her in...

 

"You're lonely," he said softly. "All these people around you. And you're still a scared, lonely little girl. You dream of an ocean, an island … you still do, don't you?"

 

"Your father, Han Solo. He abandoned you as my parents did me. He left you begging at the Jedi Academy. He was glad to be rid of you, Ben. They all were. They saw you. They saw your power. They feared it."

 

"You know Snoke doesn't love you. He pretends and you try to make yourself believe it. You're so afraid that no one will ever _really_ love you that you take the poison that Snoke gives you and pretend its love."

 

"You're afraid of becoming the next Darth Vader! You're afraid of becoming the monster your parents thought you were going to be! You ran! You're a coward! A traitor to what Father could have given you!"

 

There were tears in her eyes.

 

"We could have been together, Ben. I could have stood beside you. Helped you." She kissed him again, deeper this time, forcing her tongue between lips that were traitorously opening. "I still can. I'm not afraid of your power, Ben. I want it. I want _you._ Just give me the map..."

 

"Rey."

 

She gasped.

 

"Your name is Rey."

 

"My name is Kyla Ren."

 

"You almost forgot it, didn't you? He almost made you forget who you really were. But he hasn't Rey. He can only take from you what you let him have. You have so much Light in you, Rey- more than I'll ever have. Even now. You're not a monster- you're trying so hard to be a monster, but you're not one."

 

"Shut up."

 

"My belt, Rey. Look in the pouch in my belt."

 

She glared at him, but then reached for the pouch. Her hands looked at his belt. "I'll look. Then I'm going to take you, Ben Solo. You know I can take what I want. And when I'm done, you'll be begging me for more."

 

She opened the pouch- and saw the _doll._

 

"You made that, Rey. Even as a child on that hellhole of a world, you knew what was right. I've been keeping it for you. I didn't know that then, but I do now. Let me go, Rey. Come with me. I'll take you someplace safe."

 

She looked at him for a moment, her eyes filled with tears, she took a step towards him. And then another …

 

And then door slid open and a Stormtrooper stood there. "Ma'am! The Supreme Leader requests your presence."

 

 _Damn it,_ Ben thought dismally as she put the mask back on. _I almost had her free of him …_

 

Kyla Ren slipped her helmet back on. "Make sure that no one else enters or leaves this room until I return. _No one._ "

 

"Yes, Ma'am!"

 

"That _includes_ General Hux!"

 

"Yes, Ma'am!"

 

She nodded, satisfied, and then turned her head back towards Ben with that damnable mask back on her face. "We'll resume our conversation when I return, Ben. Think about your options." And then moving so close that the Stormtrooper could not hear her. "Think about me."

 

And she turned and left.

 

The Stormtrooper looked at the Knight of Ren in confusion. Then he looked back at Ben. Even with his helmet on, Ben could sense his confusion.

 

"Women," Ben offered weakly. "Can't live with 'em can't live without 'em."

 

"Shut up, rebel scum," the Stormtrooper turned and walked outside the room, locking it securely.

 

"Rey," he whispered. "You're still in there. There's still a chance for you."

 

He had one hope- a slender thread of faith- but it was all that he had and he clung onto it like a drowning man.

 

_She had taken the doll with her._

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I re-read the novelization of The Force Awakens as I began writing this particular story. In that Leia tells Han that Snoke essentially had been corrupted Ben since childhood and that she hadn't told Han because he was gone so often and she feared his reaction would made things worse. (Personally I feel that a Post Return of the Jedi Han who found out that some Sith was playing mind games with his only son would have happened in the Millennium Falcon and blasted everything in his path until he got to the SOB who was hurting his boy and put a blaster bolt in him. And Chewie- and the Leia from the films- would have totally helped him.) I really didn't see Reylo as a thing at all because of how Kylo was presented until TLJ, but taking another look at the scenes in the book I see more justification for that constant refrain "There is still light in you!" that we keep hearing throughout the movies. Compared to everyone else he encounters, he treats Rey with kid gloves. He may rant and rage at others, but his threats to her are subdued at best. And quite frankly, he didn't kill her at all before he learned she had seen the map. I'm sure that Rey being a pretty girl helped, but it does make the fights between Rey and Kylo less Mary Sueish when you start to look at them with a Reylo vibe. Ben didn't want to hurt her. I think he might have already been infatuated with her before they even fought in the forest. 
> 
> All that being said, I'm trying not to demonize Han or Leia … or Luke when he shows up in the story. History tells us that great people are not always good parents. That doesn't mean that they didn't love Ben, but I think Snoke got away with more than he would have if Leia and Han had been more attentive parents. Just my two cents. :D


	8. Always In Motion

Father was seldom angry with her, but Kyla Ren could feel it now as she made her way into her father's throne room. Hux was already there, looking as smug as a krayt dragon that had stumbled across a baby bantha. "Here she is now, Supreme Leader."

 

"Father," Kyla nodded her head in deference. She might have bowed or been more enthusiastic in her greeting but for the presence of Hux. She knew Father's anger would dissipate once she told him who she had found.

 

"General Hux informs me that you ordered the withdraw of our forces before we had secured the droid. This put it in the hands of the Resistance, my daughter. I trust you have a good reason for this rash decision?"

 

"The prisoner we secured has the map in his memory, Father. I simply have to withdraw it from his mind."

 

"And have you done so?"

 

"Not … yet, Father. He has formidable mental defenses."

 

"Indeed?" Father's eyebrow raised. "General, have we located the main resistance base?"

 

"Fortunately, yes. We were able to track their fleet back to the Ileenium System. It's only a matter of time before reconnaissance provides the exact location of their base."

 

"We don't need it. Prepare the weapon. Destroy the system."

 

"The _system?_ Supreme Leader, there are three habitable worlds in that system. It seems to be a waste of resources to destroy that many planets... especially so soon after destroying the Hosnian System. Once the Resistance base is destroyed it would be a simple matter for the First Order to claim those worlds. We are always in need of supplies ..."

 

"We cannot wait- even for hours. Every moment we waste is a chance for the Resistance to assemble the data from that droid and locate Luke Skywalker. The Jedi must _not_ rise. We cannot take the risk at this point in time. Destroy the system."

 

Kyla Ren could barely repress. Father had warned her in advance of the Hosnian destruction. Otherwise it would have hit her mind like a physical assault. The thought of so many lives snuffed out was enough to give even the Master of the Knights of Ren pause. "Father, this is not necessary. I can obtain the map from my prisoner and that will be the end of it. I simply need to speak to you privately about it."

 

"Daughter, you promised me that you would not fail to destroy the Resistance. So far you have not accomplished this goal. The only way to be certain of our success now is to destroy the system. We will wipe out the leadership of the Resistance in one blow, and even if the map does make it to another base, any survivors will be reluctant to tempt our wrath. If it finally puts an end to the specter of Luke Skywalker returning, then the destruction of a single system is a small price to pay."

 

"Yes, Father." Kyla looked down. She felt the bitter sting of her Father's disapproval. It hurt, reminding of the time when she was once nothing …

 

"General, prepare the weapon. You have done well so far. I am pleased."

 

"Yes, Supreme Leader!" Hux was practically bouncing on his heels as he left.

 

"Now, daughter … talk to me. Tell me of this man." There was a slight frown in her Father's holographic image. "I sense you have not told me the entire truth. Just how has this man been able to resist you? I sense you feel … _passion_ for this man."

 

"It's him, Father. The lost one. Ben Solo."

 

"Ben Solo?" The look on her Father's face was hard to read. Was it possibly … fear? "You're certain of his identity, my daughter?"

 

"I've touched his mind, Father. He's closed himself off from the Force. That explains why he has remained hidden for so long."

 

"After all this time my old pupil returns." Father was silent for a moment. "His will must have gotten stronger if he has been able to remain hidden so long. Are you certain you can handle him, Kyla Ren? His power was … formidable."

 

"Yes, Father. I know. He has locked it away … afraid of what he might become." She paused. "He feels _compassion_ for me." She removed her helmet. "And attraction. I can bring him to heel, Father. I can bring him to his knees. And with his power on our side, we would not need to fear even Luke Skywalker."

 

"If you can capture his heart, I have no objection, Kyla Ren. It would be good to see him again. But if you cannot, there are … other ways he can serve us."

 

"Father?"

 

"Lie with him, daughter. Even if you cannot compel his allegiance, you can secure his genetic material. A child of Ben Solo and yourself could have power to shake the stars. Such power would be useful to the First Order."

 

"Yes, Father."

 

Kyla Ren felt a strange twist in her heart at those words. She was honest enough to admit to herself that she fully intended to bed Ben Solo at the earliest possible opportunity. There was something about him … something about his mixture of light and darkness that appealed to her. But coupling was quite different from carrying the child of a man she might have to kill.

 

_I would see his face every time I looked at the child … and to be used as breeding stock … like some_ _**animal** _ _that was not what Father has promised me …_

 

But it might not come to that. Once she had the map, once she had Ben Solo's allegiance, Father would give her time. And perhaps having a child- a _husband_ – would not be such a bad thing. Father was loving in his way, but it was a cold, distant way. He often sent her on missions where she spent weeks without being in his presence.

 

She could have someone. She could have _Ben._

 

And with that thought warming the coldness that always seemed to lie within her, Kyla Ren made her way towards the interrogation room.

 

 

_Earlier …_

 

"Ben, you have to escape."

 

"Unless you can reach from beyond the grave, I don't see how, Anakin. I can't move anything to even _try_ to break free."

 

"We both know you have other ways available to you." Anakin paused. "Or perhaps you do not want to escape now. The girl. She is in your thoughts."

 

"I don't know her."

 

"You want to. You think you do. You see the lost girl crying for her parents and you want to save her. You want to be there for her as you think no one was there for you."

 

"Snoke _took_ her. He took her like he tried to take me. This isn't her fault."

 

"Your compassion does you credit, Ben, but now is not the time. You cannot help the girl as a prisoner. She is not ready to stand against Snoke. If you try to make her choose between the two of you, she will choose Snoke. Search your feelings. You know it to be true."

 

"There is still Light in her. So much Light. She isn't meant to serve Snoke. She's meant to be free."

 

"To be with you?" Anakin smirked.

 

"She's just a child," Ben replied with less conviction than he wanted.

 

"She's not so young that she isn't already bewitching you, Ben. You are in more danger now than you have been since Luke freed you from Snoke's grip. You have to get out of here. You aren't strong enough to face her now. Not yet."

 

"I told you. Every time I use the Force-"

 

"I know, Ben. I know. But you can't stay here, Ben. Others are coming for you."

 

"Others?"

 

"Finn. Your father. The Wookie. They are coming to rescue you and stop the weapon from destroying the Resistance Base."

 

"How do you know that?"

 

"I can feel them approaching. The love they have for you- I can feel it through the Force. I have read of this weapon through the minds of the Guards. Ben, if you remain here, the girl will come for you- and you may turn. Your father- your friends- they may die searching for you. You have to escape. And you know what you have to do."

 

Ben closed his eyes. "I know."

 

"Do it for your family, Ben. Do it for the girl- if she is to ever be free of Snoke in the future, you must be free now."

 

He was afraid. He had been afraid for so long. He would rather die than become another monster. But Dad … Chewie … _Finn._ They were all depending on him … and they didn't even know it yet.

 

"Guard!" he finally roared. "Guard! Please! I'll talk! I'll talk! Just get these restraints off me! I can't stand it! I can't stand it!" And he struggled in his bonds.

 

The door slid open and the guard walked in. "Master Ren said you had to remain silent." He raised the gun to strike Ben with the butt …

 

" _Stop._ "

 

The guard froze in place.

 

" _Release the restraints."_

 

The guard did so.

 

Ben sat up, rubbing his wrists. The guard was too short for him to wear his armor. Pity. That would have made escape so much easier. " _You will remember none of this._ _Give me your weapon."_

 

"I will remember none of this."

 

" _Give me your weapon."_

 

Numbly, the guard did so.

 

Ben checked the weapon over, set it to stun, and blasted the guard. "Thanks."

 

The guard slumped to the floor.

 

"What did you do that for?" Anakin asked him.

 

"Hopefully to save his life. They might take more pity on him if it looks like someone overpowered him."

 

"Now what?"

 

"This weapon. If it's powerful enough to destroy an entire star system, it has to be huge. Before I go, I've got to try to put it out of commission. Force knows when they're going to use it again."

 

"I thought you were going to escape."

 

"That's what I thought too."

 

"What changed your mind?"

 

"I remembered who I am."

 

 

_And earlier still …_

 

"This is an insane plan, Han. Do you really think you can get through the shielding, find Ben, destroy the weapon, and get out?"

 

"Yes. Yes I can. Finn knows the layout. We've got the explosives. And I'm going to find Ben."

 

There was no doubt in his mind. Not this time. This time he was coming back for his boy, and Force help anything that got in his way.

 

"You _have_ to get those shields down, Han. We'll never be able to destroy the Starkiller weapon if you can't clear a path for the fighters."

 

"It's just a monstrous weapon of destruction, Leia. It's not like the first time I've done this." Han smiled at her, trying to hide the fear in his gut. He knew that everything was at risk here- Leia, the Resistance- his son. He couldn't fail them. Not again.

 

Neither of them say what the other is thinking: _The last time we had Luke._

 

"The shields have to be your priority, Han." She hated herself for that. Hated having to be General Organa rather than Ben Solo's mother. Ben had not chosen the Resistance. He had tried to live his own life- and now she was willing to sacrifice that life in order to save the Resistance.

 

Would there _never_ be a time when she could put her son first?

 

"I'll take care of it, Leia." He made the promise like he was still the young man he had been when they first met. Cocky. Arrogant. But with a heart of gold underneath that scoundrel's exterior.

 

"I know you will. And, Han?"

 

"Bring our son home. Please. Bring our son home." She leaned into him, giving herself permission to feel again. "I miss him. I miss Ben so much …."

 

"I'll bring him back, Leia. I'll bring him back." He kissed her with a young man's passion. "I'll bring him back, and we'll be together. We still have time, Leia. It seems like there's always going to be war, but I'll bring Ben back home. We'll be a family again."

 

Leia returned his kiss, feeling young and strong again for the first time in what felt like forever. She wanted to remain this way forever-

 

But she couldn't.

 

Han had a mission.

 

There was _always_ a mission.

 

"Go get our son, Han Solo. And get your ass back home as soon as possible. We have a lot of time to make up. You, me, and Ben." She kissed him one last time. "And you and me."

 

"We'll be back, Leia. Both of us." He hugged her and then headed back to the _Falcon._ "All right, Chewie. Let's ride to the rescue- one more time!"

 

The _Falcon_ took to the skies.

 

Leia watched it go. She clutched her son's lost light saber to her. "Please let them both come home. Please let them both come back to me."

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm trying to avoid just copying paste Ben and Rey in this story. The events are similar but not identical because Ben and Rey are different people. Han and Leia are different because their son was not lost to evil, but he was lost to them. A similar loss, but the scars are not quite the same. I have to admit I was disappointed that Han and Leia didn't get at least one kiss together in their final appearance. And Snoke used a different carrot for Rey because it wasn't some grand destiny she wanted- she wanted a family. And I like the idea of a Smart!Snoke.


	9. Childish Things

Kyla Ren made her way back to the cell that held Ben Solo. The doll- _Rey's_ doll not _hers_ \- seems to burn her even through her clothing. It spoke to her of a time of a girl that had nothing but hope- a false hope that kept her imprisoned. Father had freed her from the bonds of self-delusion. Why did this doll make her ache so? Why did it make her _burn?_

 

She would destroy the doll. That would be the end of it. She would destroy it in front of Ben Solo and that would be the end of it. The end of the chaos that had ruled her heart. And then … then she would _take_ Ben Solo. She would make him acknowledge her power. She would make him serve her every whim again and again.

 

He would _bow_ to her.

 

The thought made her blood sing. Her lips curled with anticipation underneath the mask she wore once more. She would make him hers.

 

Not Father's. Not the First Order's.

 

Ben Solo would acknowledge only one ruler, and that would be Kyla Ren.

 

She opened the door... and saw nothing but a Stormtrooper solo regaining consciousness. "Ben?" she whispered. "Ben?!"

 

She screamed then … her cry echoing through the Force. She reached forth and grabbed the Stormtrooper. "Where is he?"

 

"I don't know, ma'am. Someone got the drop on me-"

 

"Where. Is. He?"

 

She flooded her fingers with the Force, tightening them until the armor that protected the Stormtrooper cracked. He gurgled. "Please ..."

 

For a moment, she considered continuing, but then she let him drop. "Find him. Find him or I will make you eat your armor."

 

"Yes, ma'am!" The Stormtrooper turned and ran.

 

Kyla stared at the table. "You should have stayed, Ben. Now I won't be so gentle."

 

...*...

 

 

"I can't believe you lied to us," Han Solo growled. "You told us you knew how to get those shields down."

 

"We'll blow them up. How hard can it be? We couldn't count on your wife's good will for her son, Han. The longer the First Order has Ben, the less of him we'll have to save when we find him." Finn closed his eyes for a moment. "Ben would come for me. He would come for any of us."

 

"He would, wouldn't he?" Han asked with a smile. "He's all grown up." Again he felt a pang for those lost years. "He would have made a hell of a Resistance fighter."

 

" _He's a Solo,"_ Chewbacca growled. _"He has too much of you in him to obey the rules."_

 

"Solos break the rules," Han agreed with a smirk.

 

"Which rules?" Finn asked.

 

"All of them, kid. All of them."

 

With Finn's guidance, they were able to get deeper into the base than the First Order would have expected. Nothing had been changed since Finn had left- everything had been set into place like clockwork and it would remain in motion until Captain Phasma made a change. That was how Stormtroopers worked. That was how the First Order worked.

 

"There she is," Finn said as he spotted a silver armored caped figure. "We need her. If anyone can shut down the shields, it's her."

 

For such a large creature, Chewbacca was surprisingly adept at hiding himself. He had no great difficulty at all in captured Captain Phasma by surprise. She struggled, but in the end she could not escape the Wookie's grip.

 

"Hello, Captain," Finn said cheerfully. "Would you like to inspect my weapon now?"

 

Phasma snarled a curse and told Finn where he could his weapon.

 

"Charming," Han said, holding his own blaster up to Phasma's face. "I have two requests, lady. Where are the planetary shield controls?" And he rammed the pistol so hard against her armor that the visor cracked. "And where is my son? Where is Ben Solo?"

 

Chewbacca tightened his grip and growled.

 

"Ben is Chewie's godson, too," Han supplied helpfully. "Family. You know how Wookies feel about family, don't you?"

 

"My armor was built to withstand a Wookie's strength."

 

"Lady, I don't care if it was built to withstand a super nova. My son has been gone from my family for six years. Your stupid First Order made the mistake of taking him from us right when he was finally going home. My name is Han Solo. The Wookie is

Chewbacca. Does that give you any idea of how much trouble you are in right now?"

 

"Ben Solo is my best friend," Finn growled. "He believed in me even after I told him what you made me into. You taught me about loyalty once- how far do you think I will go for a friend?"

 

"You have no friends, FN-2187. Friendship is an illusion." She thought fleetingly of Kyla Ren. They were both women of power. They had separate areas of interest. Was Kyla a friend? Would Kyla risk this much for her- would she do so for Kyla?

 

Probably not.

 

She decided then that it would do no harm to form some sort of informal alliance with Kyla- assuming she lived through this. "As for Ben Solo, he escaped. I have no doubt that Kyla Ren is searching for him. She has … plans for him."

 

"Plans?" Han felt a chill run down his spine.

 

"It's best you don't stop to think about that. Not if you love your son as you claim."

 

Chewbacca growled warningly.

 

Han Solo froze. He wanted to drop everything and go searching for Ben, but the Resistance was counting on him. _Leia_ was counting on him. Ben had escaped- he had to have faith that his son would find a way off planet- and soon. "The shields. We take care of the shields first. Then we see about the weapon."

 

 _"What about Ben?"_ Chewbacca whined.

 

"Ben's free. He's a Solo. He can take care of himself. We'll keep an eye out for him. If he's still on planet, we'll find him." Once upon a time, Han had not considered himself the type of man to be brutal to a woman; that was before he found one that had threatened his son. He gave Phasma a hard shove. "Let's get going. Finn?"

 

"Yeah?"

 

"Once we get the shields down, I want to find a trash compactor. I think the Captain should do a personal inspection, don't you?"

 

Finn grinned. "Sounds like a good idea to me, Han."

 

...*...

 

"Did you hear that?" Ben asked Anakin.

 

"The girl? Yes. She called to you." Anakin's eyes narrowed. "And you heard her."

 

"It wasn't like I sent her out a homing beacon, Anakin. I just happened to hear her."

 

"I know, Ben. I fear what that means."

 

"What could it mean?" He knew that his Uncle Luke and Mom could sometimes speak to each other through the Force, but he had never been close enough to anyone to be capable of such a thing before the Jedi Academy was destroyed. Now Rey- _Kyla Ren unless I can get her to leave the First Order_ \- was able to speak to Ben through the Force? Did she even know that she had done it- could she _find_ him that way?

 

Force! As if this wasn't complicated enough already.

 

"The oscillator. If I just reach it I could …" He wasn't entirely sure what. His blaster would not provide enough energy to damage the oscillator- and even if it did, he couldn't possibly be close enough to fire and survive the experience. "... do something, maybe."

 

He wasn't prepared to give up hope just yet.

 

_Now I'm wishing I had taken Anakin's light saber. It would come in pretty handy right now._

 

And then he felt it … a familiar signature through the Force. Han Solo was not Force sensitive, but the bond between family members was one of the strongest things a Force user knew.

 

He saw Dad, Chewie- and Finn- approaching. He turned and looked at them and half-smiled. "We keep meeting in the strangest places."

 

"Ben!" Han Solo rushed forward and embraced his son. "Ben!" He hugged him tightly as though he were never going to let him go.

 

" _Ben!"_ Chewie growled softly and wrapped his partner and godson into an enthusiastic hug.

 

For a long moment, Ben let himself be held by his family.

 

This was what home felt like.

 

He had almost forgotten.

 

Reluctantly- fearfully- almost as though they were afraid that he would disappear if they let him go- Han and Chewie let go of him. Ben patted their arms once more and walked over to Finn who had been watching the reunion with suspiciously wet eyes. "Hey, Finn."

 

"Ben."

 

"Good to see you again."

 

"You too."

 

And then they flew into each other's arms, slapping each other's backs enthusiastically.

 

"So Dad talked you into rescuing me?" he asked when the hug was over.

 

"Something like that."

 

"He insisted, Ben. I told him that you could probably handle this without us, but he wasn't quite as confident as we were." Han smirked. "We never could have gotten this far without Finn's help. When you pick a friend, you do a good job of it, son."

 

"I know." Ben paused. "I get that from Mom's side."

 

"Cheeky kid," Han growled with pretend anger. "Chewie and I brought some explosives along. We need to see if we can do something to put that weapon out of action. The next target is the D'Qor system." He paused. "Leia's there."

 

Ben froze a moment. "That just means that we have to take care of this ourselves."

 

"If we can get into the oscillator, it's the best target," Finn said. "But there's no way to get inside it."

 

"I think I can short out the door if I can get to a junction box," Ben suggested. "I've had to do a little bit of salvaging instead of old Star Destroyers on Jakku and this place seems to follow the same floor plan."

 

"We've got enough explosives to do a lot of damage if we can get inside," Han said. He turned to his son. "If you can get us in, I guarantee we can take it down."

 

Ben nodded. A cold chill touched his spine. "Dad, you should come with me."

 

Han shook his head. "Sorry, son. That's a young man's job. Finn doesn't understand Chewie like you and I do. You're the one who can open the door so that has to be you- and you're going to need Finn for backup."

 

 _"I'll keep him safe, Ben,"_ Chewie roared as though reading Ben's thoughts.

 

"Chewie and I have been getting in and out of scrapes since before you were born, son." Han squeezed his son's shoulder. "We'll be fine. And I'll feel better knowing that Finn is with you."

 

Not trusting himself to speak, Ben nodded. He hated this feeling of dread … it reminded him of the night the Jedi Academy burned.

 

 _I've shut myself off from the Force,_ he reminded himself. _I don't get premonitions._

 

Nevertheless, Ben Solo felt a sudden and intense fear for his father that would not go away.

 

"Let's get a land speeder," Finn finally said to break the silence. "I'll keep him safe, guys. I promise."

 

"I know that, kid," Finn told the ex-Stormtrooper with a weary smile. "I think you may be the best friend that Ben's ever had."

 

Flushed with pleasure, Finn nodded and motioned for Ben to follow him into the hanger.

 

"Remind you of anybody?" Han asked, watching the younger men go.

 

Chewbacca roared.

 

"What do you mean Ben reminds you of _you?!"_

 

..**..

 

As soon as she heard about the land speeder theft, Kyla Ren knew that her little lost boy was to blame. She couldn't have said how she knew- a wiser man would jumped off planet as soon as the opportunity presented itself- but she was quite certain that Ben was still here, bound and determined to do something to stop the First Order.

 

In a way, she found it adorable that he believed that he could stop them. He had forgotten too much of her Father; but she would give him a different sort of tutelage.

 

The doll seemed to burn even brighter against her flesh with such thoughts. Against her will, Kyla thought of Ben's words: " _Come with me, Rey. I'll take you someplace safe."_

 

Had she ever felt safe? Even with Father?

 

"He left me," she reminded herself sternly. "As soon as he had the chance, he left me. I'll show him what happens when he disobeys his mistress."

 

"Ma'am?" one of the Stormtroopers assigned to her asked.

 

"Nothing. Nothing at all." Kyla cast her senses into the Force. Searching. She knew that someone was in here. Ben? Probably not. She thought she would be able to tell if it were. No, this was probably some accomplice of his … someone who had helped him escape. The deserter perhaps. He had been seen with Ben on Jakku.

 

Or perhaps some _woman_ who thought she could take what belonged to Kyla Ren.

 

Down. They- and she could tell that they were more than one- and one was clearly a Wookie- were down below.

 

"Up there," Kyla told the Stormtroopers with her. "I'll stay down here in case they try to escape."

 

Not one Stormtrooper volunteered to keep her company. They knew what she could do- they had seen it before. This time … this time there didn't seem to be the lingering reluctance they had felt in Kyla Ren before as she led them into battle. This was something else.

 

Something frightening.

 

_Anger._

 

And _Darkness._

 

As soon the Stormtroopers were gone, Kyla began her descent towards her prey.

 

..**..

 

 

"You okay, Finn?" Ben asked as they brought the land speeder to a stop at the junction box. Finn had been forced to shoot at Stormtroopers- men who might have at one time been his friends.

 

"I guess so," Finn looked up into the sky. A battle was overhead. The Resistance had come to try to destroy the Starkiller weapon before it could be unleashed. They were dreadfully outnumbered, and they were losing. He fancied that the X-Wing doing the most damage must have been Poe, but he couldn't be sure. _Stay alive, Poe._ "I just feel so small right now. We're trying to stop a weapon that can destroy entire star systems, Ben. I'm not sure we can do it. Even with Han and Chewie."

 

"Size matters not," Ben muttered as he opened the box. "Something Uncle Luke would say when he taught at the Jedi Academy. The Deathstar was the size of a small moon and could destroy a world with a single blast. This Starkiller can wipe out entire systems with a single blast. Do you know what they have in common?"

 

"Aside from being monstrous weapons of mass murder?"

 

"Small things can totally wreck them." Ben smirked as he pulled out the rainbow colored flow fiber. "We're in."

 

"So now what? Might save time if we got the _Falcon_ up and running before Chewie and Han finished their job."

 

"No." _Something's wrong._ "I've got to get back to Dad."

 

..**..

 

Han Solo was in trouble … again.

 

He hadn't sensed the young woman sneak up on him. He hadn't been aware of anything until he suddenly felt _something_ push him down to his knees. "I'm very honored to meet you, Capetian Solo. I've heard so much about you."

 

The black-clad arms told him the story. This was the woman who had taken his son. "Where's Ben?" he hissed, attempting to rise to his feet … but he couldn't move his legs at all. And the light saber pressed firmly against his heart didn't give him much reason to test his arms. "Where is my son?"

 

Chewbacca was on an upper level. He nearly voiced an angry roar, but over the years Han and Chewie had learned how to speak volumes to each other with their eyes. As clearly as if he said the words, Han told Chewie: _Not yet._

 

"Ben?" There was something disquieting about the way that she said his son's name. "I expect he'll be along soon. You should be proud of him, Captain Solo. He will make a fine Knight of Ren. He might even serve as my second in command."

 

"My son will never join you."

 

"I think he will. I have his father. That counts for something."

 

Kyla glanced upwards. She could see but not sense the exact location of the Wookie. She could feel her Stormtroopers coming closer, attracted by the sound of their conversations.

 

And beyond them … like the ghost rain that had sometimes tempted her on Jakku, she could feel the sweet presence of Ben Solo.

 

"You're Kyla Ren, aren't you?"

 

"Yes."

 

"Phasma told us that you had a thing for my son. This isn't the way nice girls act when they meet their boyfriend's father."

 

"I'm not nice girls," Kyla told him. "Ben needs to learn there are consequences for his actions. If he had stayed put, I would not have to be so … determined."

 

"You're just like him, aren't you?" Han said suddenly. "You were just like my son. Some lonely powerful Force sensitive child that Snoke cajoled into serving him. He nearly got my son too. Almost, but not quite. It could have gone either way when Luke confronted Ben- if Luke had activated his light saber- if Ben had woken up at the wrong moment- maybe it would be Ben standing where you are now."

 

"He would never be as strong as I am. He fears his own power too much. If he had just listened to Father-"

 

"Oh, so Snoke is 'Father' to you? That's how he lured you in. What were you, girl? Who were you before Snoke swept in and took you away?"

 

"Nothing," Kyla said flatly. "No one."

 

"And now you're someone?"

 

"I am Kyla Ren, Master of the Knight of Ren. I am Father's Right Hand."

 

"Daddy's little murder machine, that it?" Han sighed. "You really think if Snoke cared about you he'd have you traipsing onto battlefields? You're just another tool to him, girl. As soon as he finds a better one- as soon as you break- he'll toss you aside like a used food wrapper."

 

Kyla's fingers inched closer to the switch on her light saber. "I suggest you hold your tongue, old man."

 

"Let him go, Rey."

 

Ben Solo landed in front of her having jumped from an upper level. His face was impassive. He raised his hand. _"Let my father go."_

 

Kyla Ren laughed. "You really think that little Jedi mind trick will work on _me,_ Ben Solo?" She tore off her mask so he could see her face. "But it's good to see that your accepting your true nature again."

 

Her eyes were now filled with the golden glow of the Dark Side.

 

"Ben, whatever she wants, don't do it. I'm an old man, son. My life doesn't matter."

 

"You're right. It doesn't … but it does to your son, Captain Solo." Kyla smiled at Ben, unconsciously licking her lips. "I feel your anger, Ben. Am I still your little lost Rey now?" She pouted. "Do you still want to save me?"

 

"Yes," Ben said with dead certainty. "I do."

 

Kyla's face paled... the golden glow momentarily fading from her eyes. "You … _still_ think I can return to the Light?" She threw her head back and laughed. "You are a fool, Ben Solo!"

 

"It's a family trait."

 

Her eyes weren't golden any longer. His words had done that much. "You could have had everything, Ben Solo. You threw it away- for what? A family you haven't seen in six years? A life of loneliness and pain. The total denial of what makes you _who_ you are. What could possibly justify such a sacrifice?"

 

"I can sleep at night."

 

She stared at him for a moment. Their eyes held each other. "Come with me," Ben whispered. "Come with me, Rey."

 

"No." Kyla shook her head. "No! You're trying to trick me! You're trying to take me away from the only person who ever loved me!"

 

"I-" _Why do I want to say these words to this girl I don't know?_ "I care about you, Rey." It's all he could spit out now, and Force but took all his will to say that.

 

"You're pretending, Ben! You'll never be with me- not until we come to Father. He can purify you. He make you let go of useless things."

 

"I won't go to Snoke."

 

"You will. You will because this tattered old man will die if you don't. You will because Han Solo is the chain around your heart and all I have to do is move just one finger- _one finger_ \- and I will destroy your world. You will do anything to save him. Love is your greatest weakness, Ben Solo."

 

And with sudden terrible clarity Han Solo knew what he had to do. "Tell your mother I'm sorry, Ben."

 

"Dad! No!"

 

And Han gently pushed Kyla's finger into position.

 

A red beam of energy burst through his heart, taking him away from fear, from pain, from Chewie and Ben- and from _her._

 

_And far away Leia fell to her knees because she felt one of the great lights of her life go out- just like that._

 

"No!" Ben screamed.

 

Kyla grabbed Han Solo before he fell... and then gently- almost reverently- she tossed him into the pits below. She looked over at Ben Solo who stared at her in horror for having stolen even his father's body from him. "I had to do it, Ben!" Her eyes are wide and pleading. "Your past is holding you back! The only way to be who you're meant to be is to kill your past! If you can't do it, I'll do it for you! We belong together! I know you feel it just as much as I do! We belong together!"

 

Ben stared at her, speechless.

 

She regretfully stared at Rey's doll and then tossed it into the pit after Han Solo."It's time to set aside childish things, Ben. It's time for you to be where you belong- with me." She held out her hand.

 

And that's when Chewie shot her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was hard to write, and took me an awfully long time to do so. In the end, I felt like Han deserved to go out on his own terms ... protecting the son he loved and had finally been reunited with.


	10. Taking What I Want or Becoming Who I am

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the chapter that is the reason that this story continues a warning about rape/non-consensual sex. 
> 
> It is definitely not graphic and about as subtle as I could make it, but I wanted to give everyone fair warning.

_What a stupid way to die._

 

She hadn't anticipated the bolt. Hadn't thought that the legendary Captain Solo's equally legendary partner Chewbacca would be present with him. She had been so wrapped up in Ben's presence she had forgotten everyone else- _everything_ else- and now she was paying for it. The bolt barely grazed her side, but it was enough to knock her off balance, to send her stumbling towards the edge of the bridge.

 

_I'm going to fall …_

 

But she didn't.

Just as she started to fall, just as Kyla Ren was going to be lost to the same dark pit that had claimed his father, Ben Solo desperately reached out and grabbed Kyla's arm, pulling her back from the edge. Without even pausing he swept her up into his arms as if he meant to carry her away.

 

She looked at him with wide, frightened eyes. The same hand that had threatened Han Solo touched his son's cheek. "Why?"

 

"You're worth saving."

 

They stare into each others eyes.

 

 _"Ben!"_ Chewie roared. _"I've got to detonate the bombs! You have to get out of there! I have to get to you!"_

 

"Do it! I'll get out on my own! Get back to the ship!"

 

As if their words broke some kind of spell, the Stormtroopers immediately began firing at Chewbacca. They didn't fire at Ben because he was holding Kyla, but they were making their way down towards him. And there were a _lot_ of them.

 

Chewbacca cried out in anguish a second time. _Please let him escape. I can't lose Ben too! I can't!_

 

And he triggered the detonator.

 

The explosions caused the column to explode. The Stormtroopers ran for cover. Chewie retreated to make his way back to the _Falcon._

 

Above them, almost forgotten, Finn watched Ben retreat with Kyla Ren nestled in his arms like some dark bride.

 

_He doesn't understand how much danger he's in! I've got to get to him before she kills him!_

 

He knew this complex. There were other exits than the ones that Kyla Ren would show Ben. They would take longer, but they would get him where he needed to be. He knew where they would be going, and he knew that he could find them.

 

If only he would be in time!

 

..*..

Kyla Ren wasn't used to being saved.

 

It was a strange sensation to be held so protectively in a man's arms. It impressed her that Ben could carry her so long without resorting to the Force. She was not a large woman in any sense of the word, but she was heavier than she looked.

 

If it had been another man, if it had been another circumstance, she would have angrily demanded that he put her down. Instead, she relished the feeling of his arms about her.

 

Finally, after she had successfully led him through the maze of the tunnels that brought them safely out into the forest, she told him, "You can set me down now, Ben. I'm okay."

 

"Are you sure? When Chewie fired I thought-"

 

There was something else she'd seen before- not even in Father's eyes.

 

Concern. Worry. For her.

 

"I'm fine." She took his hand and led him into a small grove. The trees broke the wind and gave them some respite from the cold. "It just barely grazed me. Look." She raised her tunic enough to show him her side.

 

"You have so many scars," Ben murmured, his hand tracing the ridges of one of them just above the blaster wound that Chewbacca had given her.

 

Kyla sighed. Even though he kept his Force connection almost completely muted, she could feel the Force crackling through his fingertips … feel it as touched _her._ "It's how I know I'm alive. I'm stronger than the things that try to kill me. As long as that's still the case, I'll stay alive." She hissed as his fingers brushed the fresh wound. "Be gentle, Ben."

 

He withdrew his hand as though he had burned his fingers. "Sorry-"

 

"You saved my life. I don't mind a few liberties." She reached out and touched his face, cursing the glove that kept her from feeling his skin beneath her fingertips. She looked at him with half-closed eyes. "Ben?"

 

"Yes?"

 

"This is when you kiss me."

 

His lips brushed down lightly against hers … she felt him start to withdraw … but she grabbed his head to force him to stay close. She attacked his mouth with her own, pressing her lithe body against him until she felt the heat start to rise in him.

 

She started to fumble with his trousers with her free hand, reaching in to touch him... but Ben forced her away with gentle, but firm hands. "No, Rey. We shouldn't. We don't have time for this. We have to get off this planet before it explodes."

 

"No?" He was going to _reject_ her? Did he really think she would let that stand? "I take what I want, Ben. When I want it."

 

She reached into the Force and gestured, pinning him against a tree.

 

"Rey! Let me go!" She felt him struggle, but it only seemed to make her ardor burn hotter.

 

"You could try to break free if you'd just accept your power. If you really wanted to stop me, that's what you'd do, Ben. But you won't. Because you're afraid of what you will become if you unleash what's inside you."

 

"Don't do this, Rey." His eyes were pleading.

 

Part of her wanted to stop now. Part of her knew that she was crossing a dangerous line. But the other part of her just _wanted_.

 

She kissed him hungrily, pinning his head into place with the Force when he tried to twist away. "You want this, Ben. You want me. You wouldn't be reacting like this if you didn't. You want it, but you're just too afraid. I'll take care of everything. You just have to … _relax_."

 

Her eyes were golden.

 

Ben closed his eyes so he wouldn't have to look at them. He kept them closed as she pulled down his trousers. He kept them closed as she lifted her robes and straddled him.

 

"Yes," Kyla hissed. "Yesss."

 

"You're a monster," Ben whispered.

 

It tore at Kyla's heart.

 

But she didn't stop.

 

..**..

 

It didn't take long.

 

She licked his face when she was finished, stumbling to her feet. Her side ached, but she was filled with a savage exaltation... and twisted regret. She felt the Dark surging in her, and she knew that Father would be pleased with her. "That wasn't so bad, was it, Ben?"

 

And then she looked into his eyes.

 

The way he had looked at her before … the way he had looked at her when he had carried her to safety … was _gone._ She didn't like what was in its place. "You wanted it too."

 

Ben said nothing.

 

"You wanted it too!"

 

Ben said nothing.

 

A wild rage filled her. She drew her light saber and activated its blood red blade. "Tell me you wanted it too!"

 

Ben said nothing.

 

 _I'll take his hands,_ she decided coldly. _When he's properly respectful, I'll give him prostheses._

 

"Get away from him!" Finn screamed as he burst into the grove, the light saber of Anakin Skywalker blazing in his hands. He lashed out at Kyla. "Get away from him!"

 

"That blade... calls to me. I will have it." Kyla Ren moved away from Ben Solo and stalked towards Finn.

 

Anakin appeared beside his grandson. "Ben, you have to fight."

 

"If I fight her now, the Dark will eat me alive. I can feel it calling to me, Grandfather. I can feel it so strongly ..." His eyes flickered golden for a moment and then resumed their normal hue.

 

"Ben, Finn is going to die if you don't help him. He can't beat her. He's no Jedi. He's going to die, Ben- your friend is going to die. Just like they did at the Temple. Just like they did at the Temple!"

 

The Force.

 

It bound him to every living thing. Light and Dark warred within him as it always had. He tried to kick the Dark away, reaching forth with a desperate hand for the Light … and grasped a thread of it.

 

He shrugged off Kyla's hold on him and stood to his feet.

 

Meanwhile, the Master of the Knights of Ren had enough of Finn's valiant- but ultimately suicidal attack. She broke through his desperate defenses and slashed him across the chest.

 

The ex-Stormtrooper landed in a heap at her feet, the light saber falling from his limp hands.

 

Kyla held her hand out to call the weapon to her.

 

It rose into the air- and zoomed past her and into the hands of Ben Solo.

 

Kyla stared at him, her blood red blade making humming noises as she spun it in the air. "Don't try it, Ben. You're no match for me. Give it to me and maybe I'll let him live."

 

Ben looked at the light saber as though he had never held one in his hands before. He fumbled and found the activator. The blade sprang to life.

 

And he rushed at Kyla.

 

Even with her wound, she danced around him, dodging his clumsy attacks. "You're still afraid of what you are. Still at war within yourself. Still divided. But you've given me so much clarity, Ben. So much strength. You know I don't want to destroy you. Stop fighting."

 

He did not answer. He swung at her again.

 

She lashed out again, her blade striking his face as she swept his feet out from under him. "Ben, you are no match for me. You're no Jedi Knight. You'll never be Luke Skywalker. I marked you. Don't make me do any more."

 

He struggled to try to rise to his feet.

 

"I'm sorry, Ben." She drew her light saber back to hack off the hand that held the light saber of Anakin Skywalker.

 

And _time froze._

 

Kyla Ren stood frozen in mid-strike. The snow itself seemed to be frozen in mid-air.

 

"Ben. Ben, son. We were wrong."

 

Han Solo was there. Looking as if he had never been injured at all. Looking as young as he had in the days when he first held his infant son in his arms. "Dad? You're not Force Sensitive. How are you here?"

 

Han Solo winked. "I cheated, kid. I do that."

 

"Same old Dad." Ben chuckled wryly. He could feel the blood flowing down his face. The wound was deep. "I can't beat her, Dad. I'm not strong enough in the Light."

 

"She's right, Ben. You've been at war with yourself since before you were born. Every day of your life, we told you the Dark was evil and you had to stay away from it. But we were wrong, Ben. All of us—Leia, me- even Luke. When we were trying to keep you from evil we were telling you that part of _you_ was evil. That there was no middle ground. Sith or Jedi. Luke or Vader. That if you could not be wholly Light, you would become a monster, another Darth Vader.

 

"We were wrong, son. You've proven us wrong. It's time to let go of old fears, Ben. The Dark is part of you, but my son is _not_ evil. You have a choice- no matter where your power comes from- you have a choice."

 

"But the rules of the Jedi-"

 

"Son, that Skywalker blood you got from Leia may have given you that power, but you're my son too. A Solo straight down to the bone. Do you know what that means, Ben? Do you know what Solos do?"

 

"Break the rules," Ben whispered. "Break all the rules!"

 

He opened himself up again. He kept one hand on the Light, feeling it flow into him with pity and compassion. And with the other, he reached out for the Dark. The Dark was strength, it was anger, it was passion.

 

But it was power.

 

 _His_ power.

 

And for the first time in his life, Ben accepted himself.

 

He was not Luke Skywalker. He was not a Jedi. He would never be wholly of the Light.

 

But he was not Darth Vader. His strength would not be weakened with pride. His passion would not be rotted with rage.

 

He was Ben Solo and it was time to fight.

 

His left eye went golden but his right remained the same. Human.

 

"That's my boy," Han Solo whispered as he faded away. "I love you, Ben."

 

"I know," Ben replied.

 

And when time started, Ben blocked Kyla's blade with his own and Force pushed her away as he scrambled to his feet. The blade of his grandfather sang in his hands as old forms were remembered, old skills came back to him.

 

"About kriffing time," Anakin murmured as he watched.

 

"That's impossible!" Kyla cried out. "How are you doing that?"

 

"Balance," Ben whispered.

 

This time, Ben was the aggressor. His blade was everywhere at once, challenging Kyla as no one else ever had. He was a whirlwind in human form. Everywhere at once and nowhere her blade struck.

 

And Kyla fell back.

 

And she knew _fear._

 

This was a battle that she could not win. She knew that. But she was Kyla Ren, and she could not- _would_ not back away from a fight. She made one last desperate charge...

 

And Ben cut off her sword hand at the wrist.

 

Kyla stared at her cauterized wrist in astonishment. She fell to her knees.

 

Ben called her light saber to him and ignited it. He placed both blades around her neck. One stroke... one flick of the wrist and it would be over.

 

"Do it," Kyla Ren- or Rey of Jakku- whispered. "I just want it to be over with. Do it, Ben."

 

"She cannot be saved, Ben," Anakin warned him. "Strike her down now or you will have to face her again- and Force only knows how many others will die in the meantime. Jedi revere life, but not all lives can be saved."

 

The planet shuddered beneath them.

 

Kyla Ren looked at him with fully human eyes. The eyes of a lost little girl from Jakku.

 

Ben deactivated the light sabers. He tossed hers away. "Rey."

 

She looked up at him, still crying.

 

"You're not lost yet. It's not too late. There is _still_ Light within you." He kissed her forehead. "Do better. _Be_ better."

 

He walked over to Finn and carefully picked the wounded man up. "And, Rey?"

 

"Yes?" she whispered hopefully.

 

" _Live._ "

 

The _Millennium Falcon_ arrived just as he reached Finn.

 

..***..

 

Kyla Ren watched them leave.

 

Her wrist hurt like kriff. Her side ached, and Ben Solo's final rejection—and the bitter fact that he had left her behind- filled her with darkest despair.

 

_Father will be ashamed of me._

 

She stumbled to her light saber and attached it to her belt. She turned and made her way to the hanger bay. If she was lucky, she would still be able to board a shuttle before the last one left.

 

"Kyla Ren!" Phasma cried. She was leading a small contingent of Stormtroopers in her direction. "You're hurt!"

 

"I'll live," Kyla said grimly. _The same won't be said about Ben Solo when I meet him again._

 

She knew that was a lie, but it made the pain a little more bearable.

 

She noted the stained armor that Phasma was wearing but didn't comment on it. "You came back for me?"

 

That was surprising. She had never hated Phasma- not like she disliked Hux- but they had never exactly been friends.

 

 _I don't have friends,_ Kyla thought sadly.

 

Phasma gripped her shoulder. "As women of power, I think we have a common cause, Kyla." It was an overture of friendship, and Kyla Ren took it as such.

 

"I believe we do, Phasma. I believe we do."

 


	11. Fathers and Mothers

The _Millennium Falcon_ had returned.

 

General Leia Organa was first among the many who awaited it. Her face was impassive. The grief that had struck her down before she kept off her face. She knew who would _not_ be coming off that ship. She did not yet know _who_ would be.

 

The door opened and Chewbacca howled a mournful greeting at her. He was carrying the body of Finn, the ex-Stormtrooper who had saved Poe's life … who had accompanied Han in a desperate attempt to save the Resistance- and more importantly- to them- Ben Solo. She glanced at the young man in Chewie's arms.

 

He was still alive.

 

Leia glanced at some of her people. An unspoken order passed between them and they rushed forward with a stretcher to take Finn.

 

Chewie came down and pressed his forehead against Leia's forehead. _"I couldn't save him. He died saving Ben."_

 

"I know, Chewie. I know you did your best." She hugged her husband's best friend. "Ben? Where is Ben?"

 

"Hello, Mom."

 

He slowly walked out of the _Falcon_ towards her.

 

Her son. _Ben was alive._

 

"Ben?" she whispered.

 

He was taller than she remembered. A grown man. His hair long and shaggy. Wearing the clothing of a desert nomad … absurdly reminding her of Luke in his younger days. She saw his father in his eyes. The left side of his face was heavily, crudely bandaged. The pain on his face … the pain …

 

 _That_ he got from her.

 

She could feel the Force in him … the Light and the Dark that had been there since birth.

 

That was the legacy that she had given her son. He had known no peace in his life because of her lineage. She had tried to bring peace to the Galaxy so that he would grow up without the injustice that had shaped her own childhood, but time and again her efforts had taken her away from Ben, from Han … from her family. She told herself that it would be worth it, that there was still time … and that Luke could help Ben deal with the power that had come from Anakin Skywalker's blood.

 

 _Her_ blood.

 

For six years she had thought that she had sent her son to his death. She saw his death in Han's eyes … in her own every time that she looked in the mirror. It had driven her husband away from her. It had taken her brother away from her.

 

And now … now Ben was alive and standing in front of her with a wounded face and a heart heavy with grief.

 

And Anakin Skywalker's light saber attached to his belt.

 

"Hi, Mom," Ben whispered back. "It's me. I know it's late, but I'm home."

 

And Leia Organa, the woman the Resistance thought of as the Iron General, wrapped her son in her arms and cried.

 

..*..

 

 

"Supreme Leader, I know that she is your daughter, but the blame for this disaster lies solely with Kyla Ren." General Hux could not contain his fury. "Years of work. Thousands of men. The Starkiller weapon itself. All destroyed because Ren insisted with dallying with the son of General Organa!"

 

Kyla stood silently waiting in front of Father. Her head was downcast. The bandaged stump of her right arm ached. She had never failed Father so spectacularly. She had never failed _herself_ like this. And all because of Ben Solo …

 

She could still feel him beneath her. Still feel his warmth. She had wanted _him_ , and she had taken him. She still remembered the look in his eyes when she had taken her pleasure- it made her heart ache- but she also felt the warmth of his lips on her forehead.

 

She had marked him with her blade, but he had left his mark on her as well...

 

"Ah, my daughter," Snoke murmured with an odd tone of voice. "Even now, the grandson of Darth Vader is still in your thoughts."

 

Kyla flushed beneath her helmet.

 

"She should be punished for her weakness!" Hux raged.

 

"As you should be for yours, General?"

 

Hux suddenly looked fearfully into Snoke's eyes. "Supreme Leader?"

 

"Han Solo would not have had a prayer of shutting down the Starkiller defenses if he had not been able to infiltrate the base. One of your own men- a Stormtrooper- gave him everything he needed to know. If not for FN-2187's help we would still have Starkiller and this pointless war would be all but over. Now we will have to use more conventional means to bring peace to the Galaxy."

 

"But Kyla Ren-"

 

"I still find you useful, General, but do not presume to give me orders. Men can be replaced. Weapons can be rebuilt. But my daughter Kyla Ren is precious to me beyond anything else in the First Order. Especially now. You would do well to remember that."

 

"Yes, Leader Snoke," Hux bowed. "What are your orders?"

 

"Marshall our forces. The Resistance has won a battle, not the war. They have lost whatever support that they had earned in the New Republic. Now is the time to strike. We must destroy their fleet at D'Qor. Leia Organa must _not_ escape."

 

"As you command, Supreme Leader." Hux bowed again and rushed out of the throne room before Snoke could unleash some penance on him.

 

"Why do you permit him to live, Father?" Kyla rubbed her wrist. It hurt, but she was determined not to show any more weakness to her father. Her heart was full with love for the words of support he had given her. Even after her failure with Ben Solo, Father still cared for her.

 

"Hux's weaknesses are offset by his strengths and make him more manageable to deal with. He is a competent general, just not as great as he believes." Snoke frowned. "Now we must speak of Ben Solo."

 

"Yes, Father. I failed you. I did not turn him to our side." Kyla did not apologize. Her Father would despise her for that weakness.

 

"True, you did not bring Ben Solo before me. He escaped you." Snoke paused. "At least for the moment. I feel the Bond between you, my daughter. He may have escaped us now, but he will come back to us." He paused. "Sooner or later, he will come to you. And when he does, we will use him to purge the last of the Light that is holding you back."

 

"Father?"

 

"I sense the hold that young Solo has on you, Kyla. He calls to the … compassionate side of your nature."

 

"Father, I-"

 

"I am not displeased with you thus far, my daughter. The Force has pulled the two of you together for reasons even _I_ cannot as yet fathom. And your encounter with Solo has already borne fruit, both literal and figurative."

 

"Father?" Kyla asked him in confusion.

 

"The Dark Side is rising in you, Kyla. Your actions in the forest show that. He calls to that side of you as well as the Light. Once you kill him- once you see the light fade from his eyes- the last lingering doubts of the Light will fade and you will be my true daughter and heir."

 

Kyla fought down a flash of pain at the thought of what Father was asking her to do. "And what else are you speaking of?"

 

"Can't you feel it yet, Kyla? The life growing within you? You are with child." Snoke smiled. It was a sight that had often given Kyla Ren comfort in her life. Now … now it left her feeling strangely cold. "Ben Solo has already done his duty to the First Order. His child- _your_ child- will be strong with the Force, and the legacy of Darth Vader will _FINALLY_ be joined to the First Order- forever."

 

"A child," Kyla murmured. She laid her hand on her stomach. She had never given serious thought to a child. There had been on man who moved her, and she still had too much to do with the First Order to even think of offspring.

 

Now … now she could tell that Father was right. She could feel a new life growing in her. She did not yet know its gender- did not yet know if there would be twins like Ben Solo's legendary mother and uncle- but she could feel that she was indeed pregnant.

 

"It was the will of the Force," Snoke told her. "Have no fear. Once it is born, I will love it and cherish it as I love and cherish you, Kyla. You have made me proud, my daughter."

 

"Thank you, Father."

 

"Now there is another task that I have for you."

 

Kyla nodded. "Yes, Father."

 

"Leia Organa is the heart of the Resistance. She is their Light. Without her, without Skywalker, they will fall. And with his mother gone, Ben Solo will have all the more reason to cling to his feelings for you." Snoke's features froze. "Kill her."

 

"Father? My injury..."

 

"You will be fitted with a temporary prosthesis so that you may join the assault. A more permanent one will be provided once you return. Kill Leia Organa, Kyla Ren. Kill her so that Ben Solo will have one less defense against his feelings for you."

 

Ben's mother. The grandmother of her barely realized child. Father was asking her to destroy Ben Solo's world … again.

 

The words came numbly. Automatically. "Yes, Father. I live to serve you."

 

Kyla Ren bowed stiffly and walked out.

 

Snoke watched her go, a thoughtful expression on his face.

 

..**..

 

 

"Finn will be fine," Leia promised her son. "I'll tell him personally you asked about him."

 

"Thanks, Mom." Ben knelt down and pressed a brotherly kiss on Finn's forehead. "I'll see you soon, my friend."

 

"You don't have to do this." It was her mother's heart that made her say this. She knew that Ben _had_ to do this. Aside from her, he was the only one that had a chance of making Luke listen.

 

But she didn't want to say goodbye to her son again … not so soon.

 

"We both know I do. Luke can turn things around." Ben looked down at his mother and smiled. "And I have personal reasons to go."

 

_Luke saved me from Snoke. He can save Rey._

 

"I know. I should be thankful your willing to go, but I'm afraid, Ben. I'm afraid that something will happen."

 

Ben smiled. "I'll be back, Mom. I'll bring Luke back."

 

"Han said the same thing. You came back, but … _he_ didn't." Leia handed him a small tracking device. "This will allow you to find me no matter where this war takes us."

 

"Thank you, Mother." Ben took the tracker … and their hands met.

 

_Her son fighting desperately at the Jedi Academy … fighting on until there was nothing left to save … the monster Snoke who had haunted his entire life coming to claim him … years of exile, of loneliness, fear and guilt … a beautiful dark haired girl haunting his dreams … Han dying with that girl's light saber buried in his chest … Ben fleeing with the girl … the girl pushing her son down … the girl forcing herself on her son in spite of Ben's repeated protests …._

 

"Who is this woman?" Leia asked in a cold fury.

 

"Kyla Ren."

 

"Kyla Ren." Leia had heard of the young woman. She had seen the wreckage that the Knight of Ren had left behind her. Rumor said that Snoke considered her his daughter and heir. "Ben … I sense ..."

 

"Yes, Mother?"

 

"She raped you, Ben! She killed your father! She nearly blinded you! How can you have such _feelings_ for a monster?!"

 

"She wasn't born a monster. Snoke made her a monster. Like he tried to do to me."

 

"You can't save her, Ben. She's too far gone." Didn't Ben realize the madness of his attraction to the dark Knight of Ren? "You'll destroy yourself trying!"

 

"I have to try, Mom. She … I saw her in my dreams long before I met her in person. The Force is connecting us for some reason. I have to know why- I have to believe it's so I can help her find her back." Ben looked into his mother's eyes. "She was all alone,Mom. Abandoned by her parents. Cast out to fend for herself when she was just a little girl on Jakku ..."

 

"Like your father and I abandoned you to Luke?" Leia asked him with unshed tears in her eyes.

 

"I'm not blaming you, Mother. You did what you thought was right. Just like I am." Ben let her go. "I'm not asking for your approval, Mom. I'm going to try to help Rey-"

 

"Rey?"

 

"That's her real name."

 

"Oh, I see. At what point did she tell you that?" Leia felt the venom rising in her. "She killed Han! She killed your Father!"

 

"She didn't. At least not intentionally. Dad … Dad used her weapon to kill himself. So she wouldn't have a hold on me. So I wouldn't go back to Snoke."

 

"And where do you think she will lead you if you go to her now, Ben? She will betray you! She will take you back to that monster- and if you don't yield to him, he will kill you!"

 

"You can't know that."

 

"I know you. Ben." She hugged him again. "I saw Luke do the same thing. He went to Darth Vader convinced he could save him. I nearly lost him then. As bad as that would have been, losing you would be infinitely worse. Promise me, Ben. Promise me you won't go to her."

 

"I can't make that promise, Mom." Ben kissed her forehead. "You worry too much. I may never get a chance to see her again. I'm going to find Luke and talk with him. He saved me. He can save Rey."

 

"I hope you're right."

 

"I am," Ben said with a confidence he wasn't quite sure he felt.

 

"All right, before you go I have something else for you." She handed him a wrapped package.

 

Ben opened it. For a moment, he was silent. "Dad's vest."

 

"A new one. I made it for him as a gift. It was supposed to be his Life Day gift the year ..." She paused. "I just never got a chance to give it to him. You should have it."

 

"I can't take this, Mom."

 

"You can. You will." She smiled up at him. "He's gone now, Ben, but he's always going to be a part of us. He's a part of _you_. Maybe the best part."

 

"You're my best part."

 

She laughed and hugged him again. "Stick around for a week and I'm sure I could change your mind on that. Go on, Ben. Bring Luke home- and come back with him."

 

"I will." Ben slipped the vest on. "Mom, I love you."

 

"I know" she said with a wry smile. "I know."

 

..***..

 

She watched the _Falcon_ take flight again as she had done so many times before. She felt some comfort that Chewie was with Ben- the Wookie loved Ben like a son and would do his best to keep him safe.

 

But could anyone keep Ben safe from _himself?_

 

"Oh, Han," Leia whispered to herself. "Our son is in love with a monster!" She gripped her son's old light saber to comfort herself.

 

And that's when the battle alarms went off.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I looked it up, and per my research conception can occur as soon as half an hour after intercourse. 
> 
> Rey/Kyla's assault of Ben was meant to be the equivalent of Kylo's murder of Han Solo. It's something that will shape their relationship-- their very lives-- going forward.


	12. The Last Jedi?

Kyla Ren had always felt more at peace when she killed in space.

 

Somehow, killing someone in a fighter … someone in a ship … when she did not have to see the light fade from their eyes … had always felt ... _easier_ for her.

 

Today things were different.

Her wrist still ached with phantom pain. It took more concentration than she liked to push past it and to use t he awkward temporary prosthetic that she had been given to allow her to fly her ship. She was to draw strength from her pain, so she tried to endure it.

 

_Ben, you should have stayed with me. Perhaps your mother might have been allowed to live then._

 

Kyla tried to shape the thought with the anger that would lead to strengthening her connection to the Dark Side, but she found that being on a mission to destroy Leia Organa- _Ben's mother_ \- reminded her of the lack of a maternal figure in her own life. Father had been more than generous with his time and attention given his great responsibilities, but still there had been a void that he had never been able to fill.

 

And the memory of her loss of a mother reminded her of the new life growing within her. She could already feel its presence manifesting in the Force. "I will be the mother to you that was never given me," She promised that new life. "I will never leave you. I will carve out an empire that you will rule."

 

To do that, of course, she would have to kill Ben Solo.

 

She tried not to think about that in this moment because it would bring a weakness in her that she could not afford to combat. Ben had his chance. Now he would pay … for her hand, for that kiss goodbye … he would pay for _everything._

 

She blocked out the ridiculous chatter of the Rebel Pilot she had interrogated earlier. Hux was so easily baited. She wondered how Phasma managed to stand working so closely with the man. "I'm going in. Cover me."

 

She received a confirmation from her wing-men and then headed towards the _Raddus_ , smoothly dodging their defense cannons as she got got virtually into the mouth of their landing bay and fired a lethal barrage that destroyed the fighter ships within.

 

She spun her ship about and headed back out. She cast her senses through the Force. So many lights- so many lives- were going out now, but they were the inconsequential ones. She was looking for one in particular …

 

Leia Organa.

 

Ben's mother.

 

She was a beacon in the Force … a bright Light that seemed to motivate her people in even the darkest time. As long as _she_ lived, the war would go on and on.

 

"One life, Ben," she told herself. "One life that will lead to so many more deaths. She has to die, Ben. She has to."

 

She headed towards the bridge of the _Raddus_.

 

And then she realized with a moment of surprise and terror...

 

 _Leia_ _saw her in the Force._

 

_For a second- a moment, an hour- it was as though they were looking at each other across a room. Leia's face was a mask of surprise … then anger … then finally sadness. "So you're the girl that's stolen my son's heart."_

 

_"Ben?" She knew she was caressing his name with her voice, but she couldn't help it. How could this woman look at her like this after what she had done to her son._

 

_How could Ben still care for her? And why did it matter so much to her that he still did?_

 

_"He's not here. You won't be rid of him that easily."_

 

_"He will come to me in the end." She tries to sound defiant, but she sounds … afraid. For herself or for Ben?_

 

_"Snoke will never have my son again. Ben's too strong for that now." Leia's eyes burned into hers. "He would rather die."_

 

_"Then he will die." The words tore at her heart. She didn't know why she said the next words. "I am carrying his child."_

 

_Leia gasped._

 

_"Part of Ben will always belong to me," Kyla told her softly. "And that means part of him will always belong to Father."_

 

_"You don't have to do this, Rey." There was a desperation in Leia's voice now._

 

_"How do you know that name?"_

 

_"Ben told me. You have a chance, Rey. You have a chance. If you leave Snoke, I will protect you for my grandchild's sake. For Ben's." Leia closed her eyes for a moment and Kyla could practically feel the older woman letting go of her_ _**hatred** _ _. "There is still time for you to come back to the Light, Rey."_

 

_"I can't. It's too late for me. I'm sorry. I'm my Father's daughter."_

 

And Kyla tore herself out of the link with Leia Organa and did the only thing she could:

 

She fired.

 

The bridge of the _Raddus_ exploded.

 

 

...*...

 

 

Anch-To seemed liked a paradise to Ben Solo after the deserts of Jakku and the frozen hell of the Starkiller world. The Force was strong on this world. He could feel it.

 

He reached through it. _Uncle Luke?_

 

He heard no reply.

 

Had he come too late? Was Luke dead? Had he died all alone on this world so far from his family and friends?

 

Was that the destiny of the Last Jedi?

 

"He's not dead, Ben," Anakin said, appearing at Ben's side once more. "He's hiding from everything- including himself."

 

"He doesn't have that luxury any more," Ben replied grimly. "Can you find a spot to land, Chewie."

 

_"Of course I can."_

 

Again Ben reached out with the Force … searching for the unique signature that made up Luke Skywalker.

 

_Desert sands. Two suns. Tragedy and Hope. The Redeemer of Darth Vader... the first of the New Jedi … and the Last.  Jedi Master. Man. Family. Ben's hope for saving Rey._

 

_There._

 

Ben stepped out of the _Falcon_ as soon as Chewie landed. He could feel the age of this place … of the stone steps he took. It made him feel almost young once more.

 

"I'll be back soon, Chewie."

 

 _"Do you need me to come with you?"_ There was anxiety in his Wookie godfather's voice. The loss of Han was an open wound to both of them. Chewie was reluctant to let him out of his sight- as though he would lose Ben too if he weren't there to save him.

 

"There's nothing here that will kill me, Chewie." He smiled gently at the Wookie. He ran back up the ramp and gave him a hug as he had not done since he was a little boy. "I love you, Chewie. Thank you for coming."

 

 _"We're family. Where you go, I will follow."_ Chewie rubbed his forehead on Ben's. _"Now go find your_ _ **other**_ _uncle."_

 

Ben hugged him again and then walked out of the _Falcon_ once more. "Did you know this place was here, Anakin?"

 

"No, Ben. It was a legend long before my time. But it is believed that this was the first Jedi Temple site."

 

Ben could feel the pull of the Light strongly here … but also … in a corner … the Dark.

 

"There can't be Light without Darkness, Ben," Anakin said as though reading his thoughts. "A Jedi's purpose is to understand the light and darkness in all things."

 

"I'm not a Jedi." There was too much Darkness in him. Too much passion. He knew now that he would never be able to achieve the detachment necessary to become a Jedi Master. Even Luke had struggled with it at times, and he was the most Light-filled person of all.

 

"Maybe you'll be something else," Anakin told him gently. "Something better."

 

"That's a strange thing for a Jedi to say."

 

"It's your grandfather speaking now, Ben." Anakin paused. "Your destiny may not lie with the Jedi, but that doesn't mean you won't serve the Force in your own way."

 

"I'm trying to save Rey."

 

"I tried to save Padme. I would have done anything to save her." For a moment Anakin's eyes turned yellow. "I did _terrible_ things, Ben. And in the end, I still failed to save her. You cannot save Rey; she will have to save herself."

 

"I can _help_ her! Luke can help her!"

 

"The choice will have to be hers, Ben. Search your feelings. You know this to be true."

 

Ben sighed. "I know. She's just ..."

 

"She's in your heart."

 

"She shouldn't be. She's done terrible things. She's done terrible things … to me." _He had told her no, but she had not stopped. She had used him for her pleasure as though his feelings had not mattered at all... and his body had betrayed him, giving her what she wanted._

 

"And yet you still care for her."

 

"She needs help."

 

"Ben … I am not judging you. The Force brought the two of you together for a reason. I hope that Rey does find her way back to the Light." Now more than ever, Anakin regretted that he could not reach out and touch his grandson. "For your sake if nothing else."

 

"There he is. Can you sense him?"

 

"Only dimly, as though through a dark glass," Anakin said sadly. "I have not been able to reach him since the day the Academy fell."

 

Luke Skywalker, the last Jedi, stood on a cliff so long that Ben wasn't sure if the old man intended to jump off or was simply enjoying the view. He must have heard the _Falcon_. He knew someone was here. Did he think it was Han … or Leia … that had come to see him?

 

His back was turned to Ben, looking at the ocean as though he meant to avoid the younger man.

 

"Uncle Luke."

 

Luke visibly started at that and turned. He removed his hood and looked Ben full in the face.

 

 _He's gotten so old,_ Ben thought sadly.

 

"Ben," he said softly as though he had almost forgotten how to talk.

 

Ben Solo removed Anakin Skywalker's light saber from his belt and held it out to Luke Skywalker. "You're needed."

 

Luke took the light saber from him. Glanced at it briefly.

 

And then tossed it over his shoulder.

 

"You need a haircut, Ben."

 


	13. Hands of Fate

Normally Kyla Ren lived for the praise of her Father. After all her recent setbacks, all her failures to live up to her Father's requests, she had _finally_ done exactly what he wanted: she had tried to kill Leia Organa.

 

 _Tried_ being the operative word.

 

She could still the echo of the older woman's Force signature. She was very close to death, but somehow Ben's mother had managed to save herself. An impressive feat for someone who had never completed Jedi training.

Father did not seem overly concerned with Leia's survival … in fact, he did not seem to be aware of it at all. Was it possible that Kyla's own senses were superior to Father's in that regard … or was he simply withholding information as he did sometimes? She did not know.

 

As for herself … Kyla felt … numb.

 

She had killed many mothers … fathers, and even children. Why should her attempt to end this particular woman weigh on her conscience more than any other? Why was some traitorous part of her heart happy that Leia Organa still lived?

 

_Ben._

 

She could not forget Leia's words: _"So you're the girl who's stolen my son's heart."_

 

She had felt a thrill at that statement. Even Ben's own mother had felt the connection between the two of them. She _knew_ Ben was meant to be hers.

 

If only he wasn't so stubborn.

 

She still had hope that she could turn him … perhaps if she told him of the child he would come to her?

The thought made her unhappy. She wanted Ben to come to her, yes. But she did not want him to come for any other reason than to be with _her._

 

"What are you thinking about?" Phasma asked her. The Stormtrooper Captain had visited her after Kyla had returned from her mission, escorting- no _accompanying_ her as friends do- to sickbay so she could be outfitted with a more permanent prosthesis. "Don't worry. We're on the verge of destroying the Resistance once and for all. Leader Snoke's vision is sure to come to pass."

 

"I'm certain of that." Kyla glanced down at the ugly claw that was currently attached to her arm. It was minimally functional- good enough to allow her to pilot her ship, but little more than that. She was looking forward to a replacement.

 

Phasma took off her own helmet. "You haven't worn your helmet since your meeting with Supreme Leader Snoke."

 

"I decided I didn't need it." She had felt flush with the power of the Dark Side after she _took_ Ben. She felt strong enough now to show the world her face. Surely now her doubts would no longer haunt her.

 

That was the reason … not his earlier whispered words … _"Force, you're beautiful._ "

 

At least that's what she kept telling herself.

 

"A mask can occasionally be useful." Phasma herself was a beautiful woman, slightly older than Kyla herself. "I've found that some of my men can't function properly if they can see my face." Kyla isn't sure if that's Phasma's pride in her beauty or a mark of contempt for male weakness. She was looking over the hand selections with Kyla. "That one most nearly matches your skin tone."

 

Kyla looked at it. It was delicate and lifelike. The skin would be smooth, she knew … not like her real hand had been after years of wielding a light saber … years of scrambling for food on Jakku. It was beautiful. "That's not what I need."

 

"General Hux is certain that the hyperspace tracker will provide final victory to the First Order. With every passing hour we grow one step closer to ending the Resistance." Phasma paused. "If that should come to pass Hux will stand high in Leader Snoke's favor."

 

The unspoken comment was "higher than _you_."

 

"I don't believe that. Hux is simply an asset to Father. We are family."

 

"It is … reassuring to know that, Kyla." Phasma looked at her for a moment. "When the Resistance is finished, will you go looking for Ben Solo?"

 

She knew the name of the man who had maimed Kyla. That was one thing she had confided. She had _not_ told Phasma that she was carrying Ben's child. She was not ready to be _that_ trusting.

 

"He will come to me." Kyla smiled. "One way or the other, he will come to me." She stared at another hand. " _That_ one."

 

It black and metallic, the fingers tipped with claws. She would be able to tear flesh with that hand, she knew. It was _perfect_ for who she wanted to be. _What_ she wanted to be.

 

"A good choice," Phasma said approvingly. _And one I would not have expected of you. This Ben Solo … he has changed you. I wonder if you realize_ _ **how**_ _much. Or if Leader Snoke does._ A vague sentiment came into Phasma's mind … a promise of something else … something more than she had. _I was wise to seek an alliance with Kyla. Her star is ascending._ "Would you like me to stay with you during the attachment? I understand the process can be … painful."

 

"Pain and I are old friends, Phasma." She paused as though remembering something from her past. "Thank you though. You should enjoy the rest of your off duty time. Soon enough we will be called upon to destroy whatever is left of the Resistance."

 

"My only regret is that I will not be able to destroy FN-2187 face to face," Phasma said bitterly.

 

"The future is always in motion, Phasma. You may yet get your wish." Kyla smiled at her … a surprisingly human expression on her pale, beautiful face.

 

"Is that a Force premonition?"

 

"I don't know yet," Kyla admitted. "But something … something is coming." Kyla looked at the older woman for a moment. "Be ready."

 

"I will." She clasped Kyla's forearm in a show of solidarity and then turned and left.

 

Kyla sat down and let the medical droid begin the long process of attaching her new hand. It was a lengthy process, and- as Phasma had said- a painful one. Organic nerve endings had to be attached to cybernetic receptors. In the end, she would have as much control of her new hand as the original, and even a high degree of touch … but it was not an easy process.

 

But Kyla was accustomed to pain. That was one of the lessons she had not left behind on Jakku. Pain made her stronger. Pain enabled her to draw strength from the Dark Side. She let it flow through her, feeling her eyes grow golden once more …

 

And then she gasped.

 

Ben Solo was looking right at her.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We really aren't given much information on what Kylo was doing during his Force Skype visions with Rey. Hence the reason for this short chapter.


	14. Academy's End

'You need a haircut'?" Ben Solo's eyes narrowed. "Six kriffing years, and that's all you have to say. 'You need a haircut'?"

 

Luke shrugged. "You should also get that scar looked at."

 

"You cantankerous old-" Ben reached through the Force and called Anakin's light saber. "Take this damn thing! We have to get back to Mom! She needs your help."

 

"Leia ..." Luke's eyes softened for a moment. Then he shook his head. For a moment, a ghostly smile crossed his face. "You're alive, Ben. I never expected to see you again this side of the Force. I'm glad." He ignored the light saber. "You should come back and visit again. It was nice seeing you."

 

Luke turned and walked towards a series of stone huts.

 

"Kriff, he's crazy," Ben muttered to Anakin. "He's lost his mind."

 

"He's not crazy. He's hiding," Anakin repeated. "He's lost a lot, Ben. The Jedi Academy was his whole life ..."

 

"And he lost it because of me," Ben whispered. "Because I wasn't strong enough ..."

 

"If I had a body I'd so smack you right now." Anakin glared at him. "I've told you. Han told you. _It was not your fault._ You could not have beaten back an army with a single laser sword!"

 

"If I hadn't been there-"

 

"If I had never broken the Jedi code and married Padme there might never have been a Darth Vader- but there would have been an Emperor Palpatine with no Luke Skywalker to oppose him. If Luke had sensed Snoke's presence sooner he never would have gotten so powerful …but you might have been lost to the Dark Side and become a monster. The future is always in motion, Ben. An act of kindness or cruelty may save or damn us later. None of us can know that; all we have to do is make the best choices we can.

 

"You were a child, Ben. You were Snoke's victim, not his servant. You could no more have stopped what happened at the Academy than you can stop a star from going nova. It wasn't your fault." Anakin sighed. "And it wasn't Luke's either. The sooner the both of you realize that, the sooner you can do what is needed."

 

"And the sooner I can save Rey," Ben murmured hopefully.

 

"Again with the girl. Nearly 30 years old, and NOW he starts to think about girls."

 

"I thought about girls when I was younger." _I just knew that there was no point in it._ "Maybe if Luke won't listen to me, he'll listen to Chewie."

 

Ben watched his Uncle head towards one of the huts and slam the door shut. "That's strange."

 

"What?" Anakin asked him.

 

"The door shuts and it's like he's not there any more... I can't _sense_ him."

 

Anakin nodded as if he knew what that meant. "I see. Let's get your Wookie friend. He might be of service here."

 

Ben ran back to the _Falcon,_ noticing the sunken X-Wing in the waters near the island. Luke clearly had no intention of coming back … either that, or he had made one lousy landing.

 

A few minutes later, they were back in front of Luke's door. Ben decided to be diplomatic. "Uncle Luke, please. I need to talk to you."

 

"Go away, Ben. Come back in another six years. I'm busy."

 

Chewbacca gently pushed Ben away and then knocked … Wookie style.

 

The door flew off the handle.

 

"What the kriff-?" Luke demanded, flipping over to stare at the door. " _Chewie?!"_

 

Chewbacca howled a greeting and embraced Luke. The Jedi Master nodded and hugged his old friend and then he looked at both of them. "Wait. Where's Han?"

 

And they told him.

 

..*..

 

 

"The Resistance is barely holding on, Uncle. They need Hope. They need Luke Skywalker."

 

"Maybe they need Ben Solo instead."

 

Ben laughed at that. "I'm no Jedi, Uncle Luke. I'm not Mom or Dad- or you. I can't bring hope. I've spent the last six years running away. I'd still be running if I hadn't met Finn ..." He felt a stab of concern for his new friend. _He saved my life and I left without being able to say goodbye …_ "I can't be their hero. I'm too … flawed."

 

Luke smiled at him. "You don't think I'm flawed, Ben? Everything that happened at the Jedi Academy shows how flawed I was. If not for my hubris, my arrogant pride ..."

 

Ben looked down. "I failed you, Luke. I failed all of them."

 

"Ben ..." Luke said gently. "Show me. You have your power. Show me what happened." He took Ben's hands in his own. For a moment, he sounded like the teacher of old. "Show me."

 

_Luke had been gone for no more than a day when the First Order showed up. How they had known about the Academy on Yavin … how they managed to slip past the defenses … Ben never knew. He suspected that Snoke had taken what he needed to know from Ben's mind in those days when he was there like some viper, filling Ben's mind with poison, twisting his beliefs and soul … Ben had to have been the one who gave it all away …_

 

_But Luke had saved him though the effort had nearly killed him, and now Ben and some of the older padawans were all that stood between the army of the First Order. Sheeva, strongest and oldest of the padawans. Kastur, tall and powerful with his smaller twin Polax always at his side. The taciturn Minas with the staff he favored over a light saber. The beautiful Morganna with her twin light sabers of green and blue. Royce with his laughing eyes and purple light saber that he claimed had once belonged to Mace Windu himself. Red haired Tika with her saber staff. The agile Ewok Nippet who was perhaps the greatest of the padawans with a light saber …._

 

_They would be enough, Ben knew. He was surrounded by his fellow padawans. They would uphold the proud Jedi legacy. They would save the Academy …_

 

_The First Order's troops arrived and began firing … and to Ben's shock and dismay, some of the padawans did not charge towards the attack … they turned on their own!_

 

_Sheeva tried to impale Ben himself with only a desperate parry saving his life. "Leader Snoke would have made you his right hand! Traitor!"_

 

_Polax- slender, small Polax- turned and with one swift stroke beheaded his gentle giant of a brother. "You should have listened to me, Kastur!"_

 

_Minas lashed out with his staff at Morganna but one of her blades managed to nick his throat, searing his vocal cords before Royce cut her down from behind._

 

_Tika in the middle of rushing Royce was stabbed in the heart by Nippet._

 

_**Anger. Fear. Rage.** _

 

_Ben rushed them, determined to make them pay for what they had done … his anger drove Sheeva back. His fear cost Polax a hand. And his rage shattered Minas' staff and came near to taking his life. Only Nippet managed to drive him back with her superior skill and calmness in the face of battle._

 

_And while Nippet held him back, the others rushed towards the younglings … slaughtering them without pity even as the children begged for mercy or tried desperately to fight back._

 

_Ben tried to save then, but every time he broke from Nippet and tried to drive back one of the killers from the children, the others continued to cut down others. He wasn't fast enough. He wasn't strong enough. He wasn't **good** enough._

 

_Luke could have saved them, but he wasn't Luke Skywalker. He was Ben Solo, and this was all his fault because Snoke had been in his mind the whole time and Ben had failed to drive him out … failed to be strong as a Skywalker should be when facing evil …_

 

_Luke's most powerful students had fallen to the Dark Side. The rest were dead. The younglings were dead._

 

_Ben had failed them all._

 

_They had turned because he hadn't been strong enough to defeat Snoke on his own. They were dead because he hadn't been enough of a Jedi to protect them. He had brought down death and destruction on everything he loved because he was not and could never be the Jedi Luke was …_

 

_And then when he stood alone... circled by those he had once called friends, he felt the dark, familiar presence of Snoke._

 

_"Ben ..." the deformed old man had hobbled towards him, a hand extended in welcome. "It's time for you to come back to us ..."_

 

_And Ben knew that if he just took that hand, it would all be gone. The guilt. The pain. The shame … Snoke could make it all go away … and Force did he want **that …**_

 

_He dropped his light saber and ran like the coward he was …_

 

_..**.._

 

"I'm sorry … I'm sorry … I'm so sorry ..."

 

He was crying on his uncle's shoulder like the frightened child he felt like.

 

Luke Skywalker, held him tightly. "Ben, Ben ..." He let his nephew cry some more, and then he lifted his face up. "Ben, listen to me. It was not your fault. You are so much braver, so much stronger, so much _better_ than you give yourself credit for. It wasn't your fault.

 

"It was mine."

 

Ben stared at him in shock. "Luke …?"

 

"Stay here tonight. Sleep. You can stay here with me as long as you like, Ben, but I can't go back with you. I'm sorry, but I can't." He wrapped a blanket around Ben and motioned for him to take his place beside the fire. "Get some rest, Ben. We both need it." He lightly stroked Ben's hair as the younger man settled down. "And, Ben?"

 

"Yes?"

 

"I love you, nephew."

 

"I love you too, Uncle Luke."

 

Ben Solo closed his eyes, and drifted off into a sleep without nightmares, knowing that Luke Skywalker was there to keep his demons at bay.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  I was going to end this chapter with the first Force Skype between Ben and Kyla, but quite honestly this chapter took a lot out of me and I don't want to force myself to go on. Beware the Ewok Knight of Ren! :D
> 
> Oh, and Kastur and Polax are based on Castor and Pollux from Greek Mythology. Apparently the Hunger Games used the same names...


	15. Dangerous Visions

Ben Solo woke up as soon as he heard Luke Skywalker leave the hut. (That came from living in dodgy situations where he didn't have the Force to warn him of danger ahead of time.) He stretched and rushed off to follow him. "What are we doing this morning, Uncle Luke?"

 

"I'm getting breakfast." The tenderness of last night seemed gone, as if Luke's capacity for compassion had been worn out. "You can do whatever you want."

 

"Then I'll follow you."

 

"Suit yourself."

 

Chewie was still snoring away, so Ben penned a quick note to let him know where he was going. _He's been watching me like a hawk ever since we lost Dad._ _I don't want to worry him._

 

Anakin materialized beside Ben as they ran to catch up with Luke. "Have you talked to Uncle Luke?"

 

"No," Anakin replied softly. "He's not listening for me, and I can't manifest myself to him unless he's open to seeing me."

 

"He's awfully stubborn."

 

Anakin smirked. "Family trait."

 

"Who are you talking to, Ben? People start thinking you're crazy if you talk to yourself."

 

Anakin shook his head.

 

"Yeah, that could be bad," Ben agreed blithely.

 

Luke snorted as he made his way to the thala-sirens. He smirked at Ben as he filed up a bottle. "Want some?"

 

"No thanks," Ben replied with a roll of his eyes. "You know we have food and water on the _Falcon_. This isn't necessary. And you don't know some of the things I had to eat and drink over the last six years."

 

Luke wiped some milk from his beard. "I'm sorry for that, Ben." He paused. "We grieved for you. All of us."

"I know. I'm sorry. But I couldn't face any of you." _How would things have been different if I had come back home? Would Mom and Dad have stayed together? Would Luke have gone into isolation? How much damage did I do in running away?_

 

"Don't, Ben."

 

"You're reading my mind?"

 

"I'm reading your face. I've seen the guilt in your eyes from the first moment I saw you last night. The past is past. You can't change it. And nothing that happened between your parents- or my choices- are your fault. We made our own mistakes- just as you made yours." Luke made his to a cliff where a long pole stuck out of the water. With an agility that wouldn't have been expected in a man of his age, he leaped across the gorge.

 

"Luke!" Ben cried, half reaching with the Force to catch his uncle if he fell.

 

But he didn't. Luke smirked at him again and turned his attention to the water below. He grunted as he speared a fish and began the laborious process of pulling it up.

 

Ben trailed behind him. Even without the Force, Luke was in great shape for a man of his age. Luke pointed to the fish-like caretakers. "They've been looking after this place since the earliest days of the Jedi."

 

"I don't think they like me."

 

"They can sense the Dark in you."

 

So Luke could still tell. "That's encouraging. You think they'll try to murder me in my sleep?"

 

"Probably not." Luke tossed his fish down onto the floor. "I'm sorry, Ben. I can't train you."

 

"I don't want to be trained."

 

"You don't?" Luke looked at him. "Then why did you come here?"

 

"Mom needs you. I told you that."

 

"Yes. You did. But there's something else too. I can see it in the way of you're not looking at me when I'm asking this question."

 

"Fine," Ben sighed. "There's this girl-"

 

"A girl?" Luke's eyebrow raised so far that it disappeared into his hair. "I've never heard you talk about any girl before. And now out of nowhere you're chasing me across the Galaxy about some girl from nowhere..."

 

"She's from Jakku."

 

"My point stands. That pretty much is nowhere."

 

"Luke, listen." Ben paused. He didn't know how to ask this. "Her name is Rey."

 

"You're not telling me something."

 

"Yeah, that seems to be a family trait too." He glared at Luke. "You're out here hiding from the Galaxy when you're needed. If anyone can bring hope back to the Galaxy, it's you. Mom's trying, but she's not you. She's not Luke Skywalker."

 

"What do you expect me to do, Ben?" Luke sighed. "Take on the First Order by myself with my trusty laser sword?"

 

"You don't have to win the fight!" Ben cried. "You just have to give them hope!"

 

"Your mother can do that. _You_ can do that."

 

"Mom's there. She's trying! She's the only reason that anyone's left to fight the First Order. But the First Order has the Knights of Ren. The Resistance needs the Jedi." Ben gave him a crooked smile. "You're right, Uncle Luke. There's still Dark in me. I've accepted it." He closed his eyes. "And I'm a coward. I ran the last time I saw Snoke. The Galaxy needs the Jedi- it needs a hero- and I can't be either of those things. You can be. You are."

 

Luke grabbed his hand. "Come with me." He led Ben towards an ancient, hollow tree. "Look inside."

 

Ben stepped inside. There were books there- actual _books._ "The Ancient Jedi texts. You _found_ them." He looked back. "Is that it? Is that why you stayed here- to keep them safe?"

 

"No." Luke stared at them. "Do you know how many times I've thought about burning them all?"

 

"What?!" Ben stared at him in surprise. "What the kriff do you mean, Uncle Luke?"

 

Anakin had materialized and stared at him. "Oh, Luke. What have they done to you?" There was anguish in the young man's old eyes.

 

"Ben … I know this doesn't make sense to you. I know you don't understand. But it's time … it's time for the Jedi to end."

 

"No," Ben whispered. "It can't end like this. Mom needs you. I need you to save Rey ..."

 

"This girl." Luke's eyes narrowed. "You chased me halfway across the Galaxy because of this girl."

 

"I wanted to help Mom and the Resistance-"

 

"The girl. Rey. What is she to you, Ben?"

 

"I … she … it's complicated."

 

"You're in love with her, aren't you?"

 

"That's insane. I barely know her." _And after what she did to me … it's sick._

 

"Tell me about this girl, Ben."

 

"Her name is Rey. She's from Jakku." Luke's eyes continued to burn into Ben's. "All right. She has another name. Kyla Ren."

 

"Kyla … Ren? As in the Knights of Ren?"

 

"Yes. Like Sheeva and the others."

 

Old pain flashed in Luke's eyes. "I can't help her, Ben."

 

"You can! You saved me from Snoke! You can save Rey! Please, Luke. I need you to save Rey!"

 

"I can't save her, Ben. I'm sorry, but I can't." Luke turned and walked out of the tree.

 

..*..

 

 

That night, Luke told Ben that he could sleep in the _Falcon_ or he could sleep in another hut, but not in his. Ben sat alone. Trying to meditate. He hadn't been that good at when trying to be a Jedi, but he hoped that it would give him some peace now. He needed to clear his head if he was going to convince Luke to come back.

 

He closed his eyes … reaching out to the Force … for guidance, for clarity … and suddenly felt a familiar presence. His eyes snapped open.

 

And Kyla Ren was looking right him.

 

"Ben!" Kyla reached out hungrily for him with a black metal hand.

 

And Ben fumbled back, firing his blaster at the sudden apparition.

 

Kyla gasped … and vanished …

 

Ben stared in dismay at the gaping hole in the wall. "Rey!" He ran out the door.

 

And Kyla was there in the dark … staring at him again with an indescribable look of pain and anguish. "You'll have to try better than that to kill me, Ben."

 

"Rey … I would never hurt you ..." Ben stared at her in dismay … reaching out with his hand.

 

"Forgive me if I'm doubtful of your intentions," Kyla murmured, holding up her new metal hand.

 

Ben winced. "I'm sorry, Rey. You didn't give me any choice."

 

"You had a choice, Ben. You could have stayed with me. Would that have been so terrible?" She looked up at him. She bit her lip and then looked away. "I forgot. You consider me a monster now. After what I did to you ..."

 

"Rey ..." He reached out to her. He could not stop himself from reaching out to her. "How is this possible?"

 

"I don't know. I don't know why the Force is joining us together. I can't see anything but you can. Can you see where I'm at?"

 

"No," Ben admitted. "You're all I can see." _You're all I can think about._

 

" _Come to me, Ben,"_ Kyla whispered. " _Come to me."_

 

Ben shook his head. "Rey ..."

 

"Why do you keep calling me that?" Kyla demanded of him. "I am Kyla Ren, Master of the Knights of Ren. Why do you keep wanting to _diminish_ me? To make me into some poor little lost child?" She glared at him. "Are you afraid that I might be your equal, Ben?"

 

"Is that what you want … _Kyla?_ " Ben walked up to her. "Do you _want_ an equal? Or do you want someone to dominate … to control?"

 

She looked at him silently. "Kiss me and find out. I know you want to. I can see it in your eyes. I'm in your blood, Ben." She closed her eyes. "And you're in mine."

 

Ben couldn't help himself. He found himself reaching for her … wanting to close the gap between them …

 

"Ben!" Luke called, looking out of his hut. "What the kriff happened?"

 

Chewbacca's head poked out of the door as well. There was concern in the Wookie's eyes.

 

Ben turned back to Kyla … and she was gone.

 

"I … accidentally fired my blaster while cleaning it."

 

"Be careful, Ben," Luke warned him. "That can be... dangerous."

 

"Oh I know, Luke," Ben whispered, a soft undercurrent of longing in his voice that he hoped Luke and Chewie didn't pick up on. "I _know ..._ "

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Things may be happening out of sequence compared to TLJ in some spots. It was just time for that first Force Skype! If Luke's been hiding for nearly six years, I don't think he would know about Kyla Ren just yet. Luke knowing about the other Knights I went with because of reasons. In TLJ Luke said he took 12 students and Ben (not sure if Ben was the 12th or 13th) to start his new Jedi Academy. He said a handful went off to follow Kylo. From Rey's vision, it looked to me like there were at least 7 Knights, maybe 8. I will be expanding on how this impacted what happened in this AU and why Luke blames himself. The Knights will appear at some point.


	16. What We Won't Say

Three lessons," Luke said bright and early the next morning.

 

"Three lessons? Three lessons about what? I'm well past the padawan age if you haven't noticed." Ben yawned and scratched his beard.

 

"You're still wet behind the ears. Three lessons about why I can't help Leia. Why the Jedi are done." Luke motioned with his hand. "Come with me. We've got a long hike ahead of us."

 

"You're not expecting me to let you ride piggyback are you?" Ben asked him suspiciously.

 

"I only use that trick once," Luke told him with a wink. "You should be grateful. Yoda made me balance on one hand while levitating rocks."

 

"Did you have to do it in three meters of snow too?" Ben sighed as he followed Luke up the mountain. Even with the time he'd spent scavenging on Jakku he hadn't exactly been climbing a lot of steps lately.

 

"Kids these days have no respect." Ben was grateful for the lightness in Luke's tone. He wasn't the only one who carried a burden of guilt.

 

"Oh I have plenty of respect for my … elder relatives. You know, the ones with creaking joints. Bad knees. Shall I go on?"

 

"I can outrun you any day of the week and twice on Sundays." Luke began to jog up the hill.

 

Ben refused to reach into the Force for this, but he ran after the old man … and ran behind him as he always had. As he suspected he always would; he would never be the man that Luke Skywalker was.

 

"The old man still has moves, eh, kid?" Luke laughed when they reached the top of the mountain. He gave Ben a rough hug. "Come on."

 

Luke led him to a rock that overlooked the ocean. He patted the rock. "Sit on it."

 

Ben did so.

 

"Not like a boy mooning over his girlfriend," Luke said in an annoyed tone. "Get ready to meditate. Reach out into the Force."

 

Ben sighed and assumed the position. "You know I suck at meditation."

 

"I know. I kind of hoped you had gotten better at it."

 

"You don't have a lot of time for meditation when you're running spice. If I closed my eyes for more than a moment my 'partners' would have robbed me blind."

 

"You ran spice? Han would be so proud." Luke's voice took on the tone of a teacher. "Can you feel the Force?"

 

Ben sighed and impulsively reached his hand out. "Okay. I'm trying to feel the Force. Do I have to buy it a drink first?"

 

"I said 'feel the Force.' Not 'feel up the Force.'"

 

"Details, details." Ben let his hand drop before Luke could smack it. This wasn't his first time with this lesson. "Okay. Yes. I can feel the Force. Life. Death. Growth. Decay. The calmness of the trees and the ferocity of the raging ocean. Light. And Dark."

 

"You're not a Jedi, Ben."

 

"No. I'm not. I tried to be. But I wasn't meant for that path."

 

"And yet, the Force still calls to you. It called to you before you ever had any training. You're not alone. There are countless others out there who have this ability- millions- _billions_ \- of beings who never heard of the Jedi or the Sith can feel the Force. To say that the Jedi are the only guardians of the light- that if the Jedi pass away the Light will die- that is _vanity,_ Ben."

 

 _"Come back!"_ the voice of a desperate child wailing, crying for the parents who abandoned them. Rey's voice.

 

_"Come back!"_

 

The need to go to her … to comfort that little girl … to _save_ her …

 

The Dark whispered to him.

 

"Ben …" Luke said softly. "The Dark. You're going too far into the Dark. It's trying to mislead you. It's trying to take you away. Fight it, Ben."

 

_Rey …_

 

"Ben!" Luke yelled.

 

The stone underneath his legs cracked. Ben looked up at Luke with eyes that burnt with the golden irises of the Dark Side. "Luke?"

 

"You're stronger than this, Ben," Anakin murmured, standing beside Luke. "Do what I never could. Find the balance. The eye of the storm."

 

Ben closed his eyes again. When he opened them, one was still gold … the other was not. "Now I have a lesson for you, Luke. This is why I can't help the Resistance." He raised his hand and pointed at a dead tree.

 

Force lightning exploded from his fingers and set the tree aflame.

 

Ben closed his hand. "I'm not like you, Luke." He closed his eyes, and both were back to normal. "I can't just shut off my feelings. I'm more whole with myself than I've ever been in my entire life- Dad helped me with that. But … Rey. She upsets my balance. My focus. I see her past- the things that she had to endure-"

 

"You have compassion for her."

 

"Yes."

 

"And you're in love with her. You're in love with Kyla Ren."

 

"I'm in love with Rey." He blinked. "Oh Force. I just said that aloud."

 

"Why does that dismay you?" Luke asked him gently.

 

"Jedi were supposed to avoid attachments," Ben whispered automatically. "And … bad things happened when I got angry … when I cared too much. Mom, Dad- you- you all wanted me to become a Jedi. You wanted me to control my feelings."

 

"Yes, we did." Luke kissed his nephew's forehead. "That was our mistake. You have a good heart, Ben. There's a lot of Anakin Skywalker in you- you are brave-"

 

"Not brave," Ben replied, thinking of the night the Academy burned. "Never brave."

 

"Don't interrupt me," Luke snapped. "Ben, you have a passionate nature. You want to help people. You care deeply about them. There is nothing wrong with compassion- or with love. As long as that love is balanced."

 

"That wasn't me," Anakin admitted softly. "I loved Padme beyond all restraint. I wasn't willing to let her go. I did terrible things- all because I wanted to save her. I became a monster because I would have paid any price for her. Love- compassionate, giving love- is a good thing. Obsessive love is destructive- to you, and everyone else."

 

"There is nothing wrong with love, Ben," Luke told him. "Acknowledge your feelings. If you don't, they will destroy you." Luke smiled. "Love doomed Anakin, but it's what saved you from Snoke."

 

"What?" Ben demanded. " _You_ saved me from Snoke, Uncle Luke."

 

"You saved yourself, Ben." Luke clasped his shoulder. "Let's go down. Chewie will be missing us. He'll rip my arm off if you miss lunch."

 

..*..*..

 

It was raining.

 

Ben stood near the _Falcon_ and watched the rain. Living on Jakku had caused him to appreciate it in a way he never had as a child. He held his hand out to feel the water on his palm...

 

And out of the corner of his eye he saw her.

 

Her hair was wet. Her eyes were closed. Her metallic hand was in her hair … the other was pressed against her belly … something about that particular gesture …

 

It was only then that he realized she was naked and covered in soap.

 

"Rey ..."

 

Her eyes snapped open. "Ben."

 

"Kyla," he amended. He should look away. The decent thing- the honorable thing- was to look away from her …

 

But he couldn't.

 

"Have you finally accepted who I am, Ben Solo?" She noticed that he was watching her. She made no effort to cover herself.

 

"I know who I think you are-"

 

"Who you want me to be-"

 

"But I know who you feel you are too." He forced his eyes back to hers. It wasn't really that hard. He loved her eyes. "And it's not for me to force a name upon you."

 

"Thank you." She continued washing herself. "This is certainly an inopportune time."

 

"It wasn't my intention. You're showering?"

 

"Yes."

 

"How is your hand?"

 

"I'm still getting used to it. It's getting better. I'll be back to full strength before you know it. How's your face?"

 

"I'll live. Maybe I'll grow a beard to cover it up."

 

"Don't." She reached out as if to touch him. "I like it. I like seeing my mark on you."

 

"Your mark on me is more than skin deep," Ben acknowledged.

 

"Your left scars on me too," Kyla murmured. "You took more than just my hand, Ben Solo."

 

"What do you mean?" he asked her.

 

"You know what I mean." She turned her back to him and a tower appeared out of nowhere. She wrapped it around herself. "We both know it. The question is, which one of us will be the first one to say it."

 

"Rey- Kyla..."

 

"You won't say it. Not yet. Neither will I." She kept her back turned to him. "Do you know what really hurt me-?"

 

He knew she wasn't talking about losing her hand. "No."

 

"You left me to die."

 

" _No._ I didn't do that. If I had thought there was a chance you would die, I would have taken you with me no matter what."

 

She felt the truth in his words. "Do you think your friends would have accepted me? Do you think your mother wouldn't have locked me up or flat out executed me if I had fallen into her power?"

 

"That wouldn't happen. I wouldn't let that happen." He paused. "You're doing this for a reason."

 

"If you won't say it directly, I can make you say it in other ways." She looked at him over the shoulder. "You really would have protected me?"

 

"Yes."

 

"I never would have let Hux hurt you either." She started moving closer to him … almost as though she were approaching a shy animal that could bolt at any moment.

 

"What about Snoke?"

 

"Father doesn't want to hurt you." She wasn't quite sure if that was a lie or not. She knew that Father would never hurt her. If he decided that Ben was a threat to Galactic Peace he would have no qualms in destroying him … would his love for Kyla buy mercy for Ben?

 

Only if she could convince him to join her.

 

Ben snorted. "Your father and I have spoken before. It was not .. pleasant. He lies, Kyla." I know you won't believe that- I know that you think of him as your father- but Snoke is just using you for your power. He'll destroy you if he finds someone stronger."

 

"That's a lie!" Kyla felt hot anger begin to rise. How dare he say that to her? "Father _never_ lies!" She paused. "Unlike Skywalker."

 

"What do you mean?" Ben asked her.

 

"I've spoken to the other Knights. Your old companions."

 

"They're traitors. They killed my friends. They killed _children._ "

 

Kyla flinched at that. "They are not without flaws, but I learned much from them." She could not resist a smile of accomplishment. "I've defeated them all."

 

"How nice for you." He was impressed nonetheless. His old schoolmates were all powerful in the Force. It would be no easy thing to beat them.

 

"They told me things, Ben. They told me about Skywalker."

 

"What do you mean?"

 

"Ask Skywalker. Ask him why so many of his students betrayed him." Kyla looked at him. "You think he's a good man, a hero. He's not- and maybe when you learn that, you'll finally be where you belong."

 

"Where's that?" he asked, knowing what she would answer but somehow wanting to hear her say it.

 

"With me."

 

And then she was gone.

 


	17. Certain Points of View

"You had a rough night, Ben," Luke observed early the next morning after he taken care of his chores.

 

"Yes. I did." Thoughts of Kyla had haunted him long after she had left. "So what's your second lesson, Uncle Luke?"

 

"Come with me." He led Ben back up the mountain … to a cavernous like structure that nevertheless had been a habitation for intelligent beings. There was a small pool … a reflective pool with an old Jedi symbol carved into its base. "You know that the Light exists without the Jedi."

 

"Yes. But the people of the Galaxy have faith in the Jedi- they have faith in you." Ben looked at his uncle. "They need the Jedi to rise again." _If I had managed to save the Temple, we might have found Rey when she was young. She could have had a life as a Jedi …_

 

"Hubris," Luke said as if in answer to Ben's unspoken thought. "Pride was the downfall of the Jedi."

 

"The Jedi failed because Anakin betrayed them." Ben winced as he saw the apparition of his grandfather materialize once more. The Force Ghost said nothing, but he clearly had heard Ben's words.

 

"The Jedi failed long before that." Luke stared into the water. "For years- _decades_ \- long before Anakin was even _born_ \- Sheev Palpatine forged his path to Empire. The Jedi saw _nothing_ \- everything they did only made his ascent more likely. Secure in their power, firm in their righteousness, they ignored what was going on right in front of them. At the height of their power they were blind to the Sith under their very noses- they _helped_ him take power!"

 

"Luke is right about one thing," Anakin admitted softly. "The Jedi had grown proud. Mace Windu wished to execute Palpatine and have the Jedi seize control of the government. He believed that was the only path to peace- if he _had_ done that the Jedi would have become the very evil they had fought against."

 

"I didn't know that, Anakin," Ben said softly.

 

"Anakin?" Luke looked at him. "Father is here?"

 

"You can't sense him?" Ben asked him in surprise, looking over at Anakin.

 

"He's closed himself off from the Force- just as you tried to do, Ben. But he accomplished far more than you did."

 

"Anakin said you shut yourself off from the Force," Ben told his uncle, searching the older man's face. "Why? To hide from Snoke?"

 

"Pride," Luke replied. "I thought _I_ was the new Chosen One. I thought it was my destiny to recreate the Jedi. I took your gifts as a sign that my family was meant to lead the Galaxy into a new age of peace. And look at what I have accomplished- you had to run for your life with your training incomplete, and the strongest of my other students serve Snoke as the Knights of Ren. I have caused at least as much harm as Father ever did."

 

"That's not true, Luke," Anakin whispered softly, reaching out to his son.

 

Luke looked up, almost as though he sensed Anakin's presence.

 

"You tried, Luke," Ben said gently. " _We_ failed you- all of your students. I wasn't strong enough to free myself from Snoke. Sheeva and the others _chose_ to serve Snoke. You didn't fail us. A new generation could be different. Better."

 

"You were strong enough, Ben," Luke told him gently. "You always were stronger than anyone ever gave you credit for- yourself included." The old Jedi Master sighed. "When I went looking for my new students, I discovered something that I never expected- the strongest of my students all both Dark and Light Sides of the Force in them. Oh, _everyone_ has both to a greater or lesser value- but the strongest Force users I found seemed to be of almost equal strength in both the Light and the Dark. They could literally be the greatest of Jedi- or the most powerful of the Sith. It's almost as though the Force were trying to tell us something ..."

 

"You think the Force _wanted_ something?" Ben had spent his entire life hearing the phrase "the will of the Force" but he had never heard anyone describe it as being sentient, with wants or desires of its own. It was supposed to be an energy field- not a … _deity? … entity? …_ of its own.

 

He found the notion … disturbing.

 

"I don't know," Luke admitted. "I thought it was just another challenge. I had brought back Anakin Skywalker from Darth Vader. I was supposed to be a legend- the new Jedi Master. I thought my mission was to _save_ these children. To turn them away from the Dark- and how hard could that be? None of them had done any great evil as yet. They still had a chance. I could give them that chance. I just had to do what I had already done before- _save_ them. I was Luke Skywalker. It was what I was _supposed_ to do.

 

"But I didn't. I failed them, and they went to Snoke and now the Galaxy burns because I failed them all. And if I go back- if I try to help Leia, if I try to help your Resistance—"

 

"It's not my Resistance," Ben protested. "I … just want to help Rey."

 

"Really? Is that all you want?" Luke stared at him. There was no judgment on the old man's face. He simply looked at Ben.

 

"The killing has to stop, of course," Ben admitted. "I don't like it. I don't want to see anyone die." Not like _Dad._ "But I'm no legend. I'm no hero. I'm just a man."

 

"The Force is with you, Ben," both Anakin and Luke said at the same time. And for the first time, the youthful Force Ghost and the old Jedi Master truly looked like father and son to Ben.

 

"You are never 'just' anything," Luke clasped his shoulder. "But I can't face them, Ben. I can't destroy the Knights of Ren. For all they've done, they're still my students. I can't fight them. I _can't._ "

 

..**..

 

_"Come back!"_

 

The wail of that desolate child … barely more than a toddler … being abandoned to Unkar Plutt …

 

_"Come back!"_

 

Ben paced the hut he had been given. He couldn't stay here. He couldn't.

 

_"Come back!"_

 

He would have been a surly teenager when Rey was abandoned. Angry at the Galaxy, at his parents … being driven out of his mind by Snoke. He would have thought himself the most tormented being in the Galaxy.

 

_"Come back!"_

 

Everything he had suffered was nothing compared to what Rey had endured every day of her life until Snoke found her. No wonder she clung to the Supreme Leader so fiercely- he had been the only one she could remember who never left her.

 

_"Come back!"_

 

 _It should have been me,_ he thought fiercely. _I should have been the one to find Rey. I could have saved her. I could have …_

 

_"Come back!"_

 

This time the voice seemed to be coming from a distinct direction. He could follow it. He could follow it to the source.

 

"Ben," Anakin said, appearing once more and sounding distinctly concerned. "You can't change the past. What happened to Rey occurred years ago. You can't save her from her past. The only thing you can do is try to help her see a better future."

 

 _That_ was an encouragement Ben knew that he would never receive from Luke. The Jedi Master would never believe that Rey could return to the Light.

 

But for all the evil that Kyla Ren had done- all the lives that she had taken, the harm she had done to Ben himself- he sensed that the Light was still as strong in her as ever. She didn't belong with Snoke. She belonged with the Resistance. She was meant to save lives, not take them.

 

_She belongs with me._

 

The thought- the _feeling_ \- didn't surprise him. Luke had already pointed out to him that he had feelings for Rey … or was it Kyla now? What version of that lost girl from Jakku had captured his heart? And what was he going to do about it?

 

_I won't join her side._

 

He was firm on that. He knew what Snoke was. He had seen too much of what the First Order had done. Nothing could make him go there.

 

Not even Rey.

 

That's why he needed Luke to save her.

 

_"Come back!"_

 

"Ben, don't! Don't listen to that voice! You don't know what it's leading you to!" Anakin was practically pleading now.

 

But it's Rey's voice. A poor little lost girl that no one seemed to care about, and he knew what that felt like. He couldn't be like the others who had left her. He couldn't.

 

_"Come back!"_

 

It was dark out, and there was Dark ahead of him... a pit … and Rey's voice – that childish _"Come back!"-_ was coming from that pit.

He didn't choose to go in. He didn't leap in. He leaned over to look … to look for Rey even though he knew that she wasn't there- couldn't be there- and he _fell._

 

_The water is cold and black and dark. It's familiar. It's like Snoke's voice whispering in his head for most of his life. Promising him great power … making him afraid of himself … telling him that the love in his parents' eyes was nothing more than fear … that they didn't want him … that they wanted him dead … that_ _**Luke** _ _wanted him dead._

 

_No._

 

_Luke saved him. Showed him he had a choice. That choice is still his. The Dark is in him, but he's not Dark … no more than he's all Light. He's Ben Solo, and Solos break all the rules._

 

With a gasp, he surfaced and crawled over to the floor of the cavern.

 

The air was cold, and he was cold. The Dark was all around him. He gritted his teeth and called on the Light.

 

He was alone.

 

There was a time that would have terrified him. When he had been left alone as a child had been the times that Snoke had been the strongest … whispering … always whispering … sounding like a friend … sounding like he cared.

 

Until he told Ben what he wanted him to do.

 

He spent six years alone. Trying to hide from the Force. Trying to hide from his family. Watching the Galaxy burn because he thought all he could do was add fuel to the flames.

 

He couldn't be a hero. He knew that. He had told Luke that, and he believed it with every fiber of his being. He couldn't be the hero that the Galaxy needed.

 

But he wouldn't be a monster, either.

 

Yes, he was used to silence … used to solitude now. There was no Snoke in his head any longer...

 

Now … now there's just Kyla Ren.

 

He looked around for an exit … and saw the ice or crystal ahead of him. His own reflection started at him … not as he was now … robed as a Jedi Master wielding Anakin's light saber … as a masked man in black with a blazing red light saber much like Kyla Ren's …

 

His twins looked at him.

 

He looked back.

 

"You're not me." He was talking to both of them. "You'll never be me. Either of you."

 

The images faded.

 

And something new formed … a little girl ….

 

_Rey._

 

He went to the girl … no wait … it _wasn't_ Rey. She looked a lot like her, but this girl was different. She had _his_ eyes …

 

The little girl held her hand out to him.

 

Ben knelt down to take it …

 

And found himself looking at Kyla Ren.

 

No wait … this Kyla was clad in white. Her hair was longer … her skin darker, as though she did not conceal every inch of her body with her black robes and mask.

 

She bent down and picked up the little girl. She held the girl in her arms and the two of them reached out to Ben …

 

_Rey …._

 

But when he touched the wall, they were gone.

 

..**..

 

Kyla came to him in his hut.

 

"What happened?" she asked softly. "You look ..."

 

"I fell into a pit," Ben said simply. "A place filled with the Dark Side. It showed me thing … things that I'm not sure what they meant."

 

"You're not alone," she said softly. She wanted to touch his face, but reaching out with that metal hand seemed wrong …

 

"Neither are you." He smiled at her … and Kyla felt her face blush as she looked away.

 

He had power over her. Too much power for someone who was not on her side. His power … if he chose to fight with the Resistance he could be just as much trouble as Skywalker. Maybe more. _He_ was able to use the Light _and_ the Dark.

 

And she ached for his touch …

 

To distract herself, she asked, "Did you talk to him about the Knights of Ren?"

 

"He told me about them. He said that his most powerful students all had great power in both the Dark and Light Sides of the Force. He tried to help them like he helped me."

 

"Is that what he told you, Ben?" Kyla looked at him out of the corner of her eyes. She wanted to touch his wet hair. To twine it around her fingers.

 

"It's the truth."

 

"That's not what Sheeva told me."

 

"What did Sheeva say?" He didn't trust her- Sheeva had always been too Dark for his taste, even before she turned.

 

"When your uncle … _saved_ you … when the New Republic came to pick him up for medical care, Sheeva was able to overhear him speak to the pilot who picked him up. He handed this woman- Shara Bey I think Sheeva said her name was- a list and said that these padawans needed to be detained. If they resisted … well lethal force was an option."

 

"No," Ben whispered.

 

"Don't you get it, Ben? The Knights of Ren turned on your uncle because he betrayed them first! He meant to have them _killed_ rather than let them serve the Dark."

 

"He wouldn't do that. He would never kill his students."

 

"Are you sure about that, Ben?" Kyla asked him gently. "Do you really think that I would lie to you? Do you think I _can_ lie to you about anything?"

 

"I don't think you're lying to me," Ben told her gently. "But Sheeva could have lied to you."

 

Kyla looked at him. "I don't think she did. I saw her mind. She believed what she was saying. He's not who you think he is, Ben. Luke Skywalker is not a hero."

 

"I can't believe that."

 

"You are such a stubborn fool, Ben Solo."

 

"And yet you're here with me."

 

"I don't have a choice. The Force is bringing us together."

 

"Would you really want to be anywhere else right now?" Ben asked her. "As for me … I'm right where I want to be."

 

They looked at each other.

 

"Kyla?"

 

"Yes, Ben?"

 

"This is where you kiss me."

 

She did. Tentatively at first … uncertain that he meant it … that he could forgive her for what she had done to him … and then his tongue was in her mouth and his hands were tearing at her clothes and they were rolling around on the floor of his hut.

 

And then the vision came to them.

 

"Ben ..." Kyla whispered. "Do you see it?"

 

"I do..." He whispered back hoarsely and he kissed her fiercely.

 

"NO!" Luke Skywalker roared, and with a wave of his hand he shattered Ben's hut and sent Kyla away.


	18. Past Mistakes, Future--?

Ben! Are you okay? Did she hurt you?" Luke knelt down in the wreckage of the hut to examine Ben.

 

"We weren't fighting!" Ben turned his back to Luke and tucked himself back into his clothing. "We were … we weren't fighting."

 

"Oh." Luke stared at him for a moment. "Ben … you shouldn't. Not with her. She's … dangerous."

 

"I know that. She became dangerous because there was no Jedi Academy to find her. No Jedi Masters to teach her. She was ripe for Snoke to claim … to _corrupt_." He closed his eyes for a moment and saw his vision of Kyla … no, _Rey_... with him. Standing with him. Standing against the First Order. "I've seen her future."

 

"No one can see the future, Ben. It's always in motion." Luke paused. "You share a bond with her … a Force Bond."

 

"Yes."

 

"How long?"

 

"I don't know." Ben stood up. He still felt almost physically ill from the severing of the link. "I was living in her old home- an abandoned AT-AT on Jakku. I could sense her Focre presence- even years after she had left it, I could still _feel_ her. Then on Takodana … I _heard_ her voice calling for help. It led me to Anakin's light saber. But the Bond … this linking didn't happen until I got here."

 

"I'll find a way to sever it, Ben. I promise you. I won't let her hurt you."

 

"Luke … she doesn't want to hurt me. I don't want to hurt her. I … _need_ her. You said it yourself: I'm in love with her."

 

"The Bond could be manipulating you. You know how deceptive Snoke can be."

 

"This isn't Snoke. It's us. Kyla and I."

 

"Ben ..."

 

"I saw her future, Luke. If I go to her, she'll leave the First Order. She'll come with me. We're meant to be together."

 

"Ben … listen to yourself. You're obsessed. She's clouding your mind. This … _lust_ you feel for Kyla Ren is blinding you. You're not thinking straight."

 

"Like you were when you told Poe's mother to kill Sheeva and the others?"

 

Luke froze.

 

"It's true, isn't it?" Ben stared at his uncle for a moment. "They were your students! Your padawans! You had a responsibility to them! Do you know what you did, Luke? You created the Knights of the Ren! Every thing they've done- every murder, every crime- it all happened because of you! They believed in you!" Ben closed his eyes, fighting back tears.. " _I_ believed in you."

 

"Ben ..." Luke closed his eyes. "You don't understand."

 

"Then _tell_ me, Uncle Luke. Help me understand."

 

"I'll do better than that. I'll show you." Luke offered his hand.

 

For a moment- a longer moment than Luke would have expected- Ben looked at him. Then he took his uncle's hand.

 

_Luke had felt the darkness in his nephew. Felt it rising. Growing stronger. There had always been Dark in Ben; perhaps a bit more than anyone else, but that was to be expected. Ben was strong in the Force; it shaped him in a way that Luke hadn't seen in any of his students._

 

_A dark foreboding had drawn him to Ben's hut that night. Once inside, he had delicately reached into nephew's mind … and witnessed a terrifying vision of the future._

 

_A masked Ben wearing black and wielding a blazing red light saber. Slaughtering the other Padawans. Not alone- with Sheeva, Kastur, Polax, Minas, Royce- even Nippet- at his side. Ben killing innocents, leading Stormtroopers. Ben … Ben **killing** Han …_

 

_He couldn't allow that. He couldn't let Ben become that **monster.** He didn't even remember drawing his light saber. He didn't remember igniting it …_

 

_"Luke, no."_

 

_Two words. Two words whispered in the dark. Two words from a voice he hadn't heard from in years._

 

_Not the voice of Ben Kenobi. Not Yoda. Not even the voice of Anakin Skywalker._

 

_**Darth Vader's** voice._

 

_Darth Vader. The Dark Lord of the Sith that no one believed could be saved. The murdering monster of a man that had killed without remorse, without pity, who had tortured his own daughter … and watched as an entire **world** had been destroyed._

 

_But he had come back to the Light. For Luke, he had turned._

 

_Luke dropped his light saber to the floor._

 

_And that's when Ben woke up. He saw Luke … and somehow seemed to sense the thoughts running through Luke's head … and grabbed his own light saber. He ignited it and …_

 

_Luke did nothing. He didn't try to retrieve his own light saber. He didn't try to move out of the way. He just stood there._

 

_Ben managed to stop his blow just in time. The illumination from his light saber lit up Luke's face. Ben's face was a mixture of terror and anger. And there was a look of utter betrayal on his face._

 

_He **knew** what Luke had thought of doing._

 

_But he had withheld that fatal blow. Seeing a defenseless man, he had stopped his attack._

 

_"I love you, Ben." Luke looked at him. "I know you've been fighting for so long. That you thought you had to do this all on your own. You don't. It's not you, Ben. This voice- this thing- it's not you."_

 

_Ben had stared at him, breathing like a Tauntaun that had just ran a marathon. "It doesn't stop. The voice. It keeps telling me I have to things. Bad things. It wants me to hurt you... Mom. Dad. It wants me to do **terrible** things. It says I have to finish what Grandfather started."_

 

_"It's lying to you, Ben. You aren't alone. You have never been alone. I'm here for you. Your parents are here. We love you. We won't abandon you. No matter what that voice says. We won't give up on you."_

 

_"I-" There was the bitter taste of shame in Ben's voice. Fear, too. And just a hint of hope._

 

_Luke held his hand out to Ben. "Take it. I'll share everything. You can hold back if you need to. I want you to know that I'm telling you the truth."_

 

_Ben took his uncle's hand. His human hand. He whimpered as he saw the future that Luke had seen. He cried as he saw himself murdering others … he screamed when he saw Han die. "Kill me, Uncle Luke. Kill me. It's the only way. Don't let me become that. Please. Kill me."_

 

_Ben dropped his light saber._

 

_"No." Luke hugged him as he hadn't since Ben was a young boy. "I won't let you go, Ben. No matter what he says. No matter what he does- I will **never** let you go."_

 

_And Ben opened himself up … let Luke into his mind in the way he never had before. Luke saw the petty acts that a Force powerful boy had done. He felt Ben's anger, his sense of abandonment and betrayal. He heard the voice of Darth Vader … and he knew it was not his father. It was not any aspect of his father. "That's not him, Ben. That's not your grandfather. The voice is lying to you. It's always lied to you."_

 

_**"He's mine."** _

 

_The voice that came out of Ben's mouth wasn't his. It was Snoke's._

 

_"He isn't. He doesn't belong to you."_

 

_**"He will be the next Darth Vader. He will lead my Knights of Ren. I have seen it."** _

 

_"No. He won't. Ben gets to decide his own fate. He isn't your pawn. He's not your slave. His choice hasn't been made. He can make it now. He can make it every day of his life. You get to decide who you are, Ben Solo. Not me. Not this creature. Not your grandfather or your parents. This is your life, Ben. **Choose.** And know that I love you- no matter what."_

 

_Ben closed his eyes. "Get out of my head. Get out of my head! Get. Out. Of. My. Head!"_

 

_Snoke- though Luke didn't know his name even then- roared. He lashed out. Even across light years, his power was still potent enough to bring the hut down around their ears._

 

_But Luke held it back. Crumbling all around them, Luke clung to his nephew and kept him safe. He felt the weight … not just of the stone … but of Snoke's will … his power … trying to destroy them both._

 

_"You heard my nephew," Luke whispered, feeling his heart beating like a trip-hammer. "Go!"_

 

_And with what felt like the lasts of his strength, he hurled Snoke's dark presence away from his nephew, from his Academy._

 

_And he held the rubble up until Ben was able to drag him to safety._

 

"Anakin," Ben breathed as Luke let go of his hand. "Anakin saved me."

 

His grandfather's spirit appeared. "Luke would not have listened to any other voice but that one. He wouldn't even have heeded Anakin Skywalker. Darth Vader is still a part of me, Ben. He always will be. I accept it, but I am not bound by it."

 

Luke glanced over. "It's good to see you again, Father."

 

"And you as well, my son." Anakin smiled at him.

 

"You saved me. You both saved me."

 

"No," Luke whispered. "You saved yourself, Ben. Once you made the choice, Snoke had no power over you. He tried to destroy you because he knew that your power was the greatest threat to him. I kept him from killing you, but the real victory was when you told him no."

 

"You helped me. Why not the others. Once you knew that they would become the Knights- why didn't you help them? If my future wasn't set, neither was theirs."

 

"I was weak, Ben. Sick. I wanted them … detained. Until I was strong enough to help them. I didn't want Snoke to get his hands on them."

 

"Did you tell Shara Bey she could kill them?"

 

Luke closed his eyes. "I didn't say that. I said that 'extreme force' could be used if necessary- but only as a last resort."

 

Ben closed his eyes again. "You failed them, Uncle Luke."

 

"Yes. I did. I was wrong."

 

"You were. Kastur … Kastur didn't turn. He remained loyal to the Jedi."

 

"He was loyal to you." Luke gave him a sad smile.

 

"It proves my point," Ben said stubbornly. "I can bring Rey back."

 

"Ben … if you go with her, she will take you to Snoke. He can't turn you. I know that now. But he could still kill you. For all your power, you're not his equal. Not yet."

 

"She won't do that. She loves me."

 

"Has she said that?"

 

"Not in so many words," Ben admitted. "But it's there. I feel it."

 

"And if you somehow manage to convince her to leave the First Order, do you really think she will go work with your mother? With the Resistance?"

 

"That isn't what I want for her. We can go away-"

 

"You'd leave your mother? Your friends?"

 

 _Finn._ _**Mom...**_

 

"You can save them. You're the Jedi Master." Ben stood up. "I don't want this war, Uncle Luke. I don't want to fight it. I don't want to fight Kyla. You said it was always my choice. I don't want to fight Kyla. I don't want to fight the First Order. I just want to save her from Snoke."

 

"This won't go the way you think, Ben. She's not your Rey. She's not even fully your Kyla. Snoke has shaped her into his weapon. She's his creature."

 

"No. She belongs to herself." _And maybe to me. Force, yes. She's_ _ **mine!**_ "Don't try to stop me, Uncle Luke."

 

"Ben, listen to your uncle," Anakin told him gently. "You're going down a dangerous path. Kyla can be saved- but she has to save herself. You can't just ride in and steal her away from the path she has chosen. Just like you, she has to make her choice."

 

"She'll never do that unless someone offers her a better choice. I'm going to do that."

 

"He's so damn stubborn," Luke said in exasperation. "Ben, if you go to Kyla, you could _die._ "

 

"If I don't go, I'll die anyway. I'm not … whole without her, Uncle Luke."

 

Luke stared at him for a long moment. "I am seriously tempted to make you stay."

 

"I know." A hint of that Solo cockiness that he had inherited from his father came through in a sudden smile. "At least you'd _try."_ Ben looked into his uncle's eyes. "Luke, I have to do this. _Please."_

 

Luke sighed. "All right. I won't try to stop you. Leia will never forgive me if you get yourself killed, you know."

 

"I know." Ben sighed. "I know this is probably not the best idea I ever had, Uncle Luke. But I _have_ to do this."

 

"I know." Luke pulled him into a rough embrace. "Just don't make me regret letting you go."

 

"I'll do my best."

 

..**..

 

It seemed like forever for the Bond to open to them again, but it really couldn't have been more than an hour or so. Ben barely had enough time to shave again and wash his hair. He slipped into some clean clothes and waited.

 

"You're all right?" Kyla demanded when she materialized. "He didn't hurt you?"

 

"No. He didn't. Kyla, I'm coming to get you."

 

"What?" Kyla stared at him in confusion.

 

"Tell me where you are. Give me the coordinates. I'll come get you and then arrange a rendezvous for someone to pick us up."

 

"Ben-"

 

"I want to be with you, Kyla. I know you want that too. But I won't join the First Order. Come with me, Kyla. I won't ask you to fight the First Order or your father. I just need you to be with me. Please."

 

Kyla stared into his eyes for a long moment. Then she broke into a hesitant smile. She kissed him quickly on the lips and whispered into his ear.

 

The coordinates to Snoke's ship.

 

"I'm coming for you, Kyla. I promise you, I'm coming for you." Ben rushed towards the _Millennium Falcon._ "Chewie! We're going! I'll tell you where when we get there." _But I need to pick something up first._

 

Luke watched the _Falcon_ take off. "He's our last hope."

 

"Wrong you are, Young Skywalker."

 

Luke glanced over. "Master Yoda."

 

"His destiny, Ben Solo must pursue. Will it, the Force does."

 

"I know. I just had … hopes. I don't want to lose him, Yoda."

 

"A Jedi, Ben Solo was never meant to be. His path, lies elsewhere it does."

 

"Not one of the old Jedi," Luke admitted. "But maybe something new. Something better."

 

"Concerned, you should be. Hope, I have though. Yes. A Jedi, Ben Solo will never be. But the Jedi, from Ben Solo, will arise. Seen it I have." Yoda chuckled. "The end, this is not, Young Skywalker. The beginning, it is."

 

"I hope you're right."

 

"His destiny, Ben Solo must find. Your sister, you must aid. If the Resistance falls, triumph the Dark Side will."

 

"All right, Master Yoda." Luke sighed. "I'll do what I can."

 

..**..

 

 _"I have a bad feeling about this,"_ Chewbacca growled as he helped Ben into an escape pod.

 

"Me too," Ben admitted. "But this is what I'm meant to do." He had never been more certain of anything in his entire life. "As soon as you eject the escape pod, go into hyper-space. I'll signal you when I can."

 

Chewbacca wrapped him in a fierce hug. _"Be safe."_

 

"I'll do what I can. Thank you for believing in me, Chewie."

 

 _"You're a Solo. Doing the impossible is a family trait."_ Chewie laughed in that rough way that he had. _"Of course having things blow up in your face is a Solo trait too."_

 

"I know, Chewie. I know." Ben took a deep breath and laid down in the escape pod. It felt entirely too much like a coffin at that moment. "Let's do this."

 

And he clutched Anakin's light saber to his chest.

 

_Kyla, I'm coming for you._

 

_I'm waiting,, Ben._

 

And the escape pod flew into space.


	19. Turning Point

Kyla was waiting for him when the escape pod opened. She licked her lips and looked nervously away.

 

"Kyla-" And that was when Ben realized why she had looked away.

 

They weren't alone.

 

He could have fought the Stormtroopers, but there were so many of them he was sure to be stunned before he could deal with them all. He looked at Kyla to see what she had in mind. "I had no idea we were going to be chaperoned."

 

Kyla smiled slightly and held out her hand. "The light saber, Ben. Please."

 

Reluctantly- everything in him screamed against it- handed it to her. He briefly squeezed her gloved hands before he did so. _I trust you, Kyla._

 

Kyla attached it to her belt and nodded to a nearby Stormtrooper.

 

Ben submitted as the man attached the binders. Even without the Force, he could sense the man's fear and unease. Stormtroopers were drilled time and again for every possible contingency, but this was not one their leaders had imagined. "It'll be okay," Ben told the man.

 

Kyla rolled her eyes. "Really, Ben?"

 

He shrugged and gave her one of those Solo smiles. The panic was in him- _Oh Force I'm on Snoke's ship-_ but he covered it up with bravado. There was little else he could do at this point.

 

The Stormtroopers escorted them to an elevator where Kyla dismissed them. They entered the elevator and it began its descent.

 

"Kyla?"

 

She hit the emergency stop button and kissed him passionately on the lips. "Force, I need you so badly, Ben." She was tugging at his clothes again.

 

"Kyla-" He returned the kiss, but a remembered fear came back to him. "Kyla, _no_."

 

She stopped. The desire burned in her eyes, but she stopped. "Ben … please. I won't force you. Not again. But I want you so much." She let her barriers slip and the desire nearly made Ben swoon.

 

He had never felt so wanted.

 

It was the wrong time. It was definitely the wrong place. But …

 

It was the right woman.

 

"Can we at least take off the binders?"

 

In response, Kyla smiled.

 

..**..

 

 

They were making their way to Kyla's private TIE Interceptor. It was going to be a tight fit, but they could make it. If luck was just with them, they could get away …

 

_Kyla._

 

"Father!" Kyla gasped. She clutched Ben's hand tightly.

 

_Bring him to me, Kyla. Bring him to me NOW._

 

"He knows you're here, Ben. He _knows_." Kyla let go of Ben and clutched her head. "Father, please. Please let us go. _Please."_

 

_Kyla. Bring Ben Solo to me now._

 

And Kyla screamed as she fell to her knees. The pain was like nothing she had ever felt before. Father had never done this to her before. He had never _hurt_ her like this before. "Father!"

 

_You will bring him to me or I will kill you, Kyla._

 

"Father ..." Kyla gasped. "He says … he says he'll kill me if we don't go to him. Ben, you have to go. You have to run. I can't protect you- Go!"

 

"No!" Ben knelt beside her. He took Kyla's face in his hands. "I told you that you're not alone." He kissed her forehead. "All right. Tell him. Tell him we'll go to him."

 

_I heard him. Bring him, Kyla. Bring him to me. I am very disappointed in you, daughter. You failed me._

 

The pain lessened. Kyla managed to stand up. She clung to Ben's hand. "What are we going to do?" she whispered.

 

"What we have to," Ben promised her. He kissed her gently.

 

Hand in hand, they made their way to Snoke.

 

..**..

 

"And so the prodigal son returns. Welcome back, my Kylo Ren."

 

Snoke sat on his throne. His blood-clad Praetorian Guard stood at the ready. The Force hummed around like an angry hornet's nest.

 

He held out his hand and Anakin Skywalker's light saber flew into it.

 

Ben fought down his fear for Kyla. His fear for himself. His hatred for the creature before him. "I am not your son. I am not Kylo Ren. My father's name was Han. My name is Ben Solo. You don't own me, Snoke. Not anymore."

 

Snoke laughed. He wheezed. "Kyla … my daughter … my greatest creation. My greatest hope for the future. I am disappointed in you in a way I never thought I would be."

 

"Father-"

 

"Silence!" Snoke gestured and Kyla went flying against the wall.

 

"Leave her alone!" Ben roared. "I'm the one you want. This is between us."

 

"How quick you are to defend her. You _humans_." Snoke sneered. "The touch of a hand … the warmth of an embrace … and you will throw yourselves headlong into self destruction." Snoke glared at Kyla again. "I gave you power! I made you my daughter! I would have given you the Galaxy! And you would throw it all away for a frightened man-child?"

 

"Father-" Kyla pleaded. "I never meant to disobey you-"

 

"I _loved_ you, Kyla! I could have loved no child of my flesh any more than I cherished you! This was all for you! The First Order- the power- I was creating a future for you! Traitor!"

 

Kyla winced.

 

"That's a lie," Ben said calmly.

 

Snoke glared at him and now it was Ben's turn to be thrown against the wall. "You corrupted my daughter! You have no say in this, Ben Solo!"

 

"You made me the same promises. You told me it was my destiny to finish what my grandfather started. You said that Luke was jealous of my power and would destroy me if I did not destroy him first."

 

"I would have made you great!"

 

"You would have destroyed me as you tried to destroy Kyla Ren."

 

"You think this _love_ you share will protect you? Do you think my daughter has truly turned?" Snoke laughed. "Do you think this _bond_ between you is real? I shaped it! I chained you two together, link by link. I knew the only way to bring your cowardly self to me again was to give you something that you would care for more than yourself: my daughter."

 

"Father?" Kyla asked. Her face was a mask of misery.

 

"We will speak of your punishment later, daughter. Kneel."

 

Kyla stood up.

 

Snoke gestured and she was forced down to her knees. "Kneel, I said!"

 

Another gesture and Ben found himself levitated towards Snoke. The old alien- of what race Snoke had been born from no one but he knew- looked at Ben. "You've grown, boy. I grant you that. I sense the balance in you that I tried to create in my daughter. You will serve me."

 

"Never!"

 

"Willingly or unwillingly, you will serve me. You will tell me where to find Luke Skywalker."

 

"Go to hell."

 

"You first."

 

The invasion was nothing like Snoke's attempts during his boyhood. This was a brutal assault of sheer power. He felt the old man's mind sort through his like a Scavenger on Jakku stripping down a broken ship.

 

"Skywalker … ah there he is. And he has lost hope …Good. Good."

 

"I told you before, Snoke- get out of my head!" Ben roared and reached into the Force. He tore apart the mental tentacles that the Supreme Leader had forced into his mind and landed on the floor. He called out for Anakin's light saber.

 

It smashed into his forehead with such force that Ben saw stars. He fell to the ground.

 

"You are strong, boy. I'll grant you that. But I have what I need to find Luke Skywalker and end the Jedi once and for all. Even as we speak, General Hux is destroying the last of the Resistance. With your death, Ben Solo, victory will be assured." Snoke placed the light saber beside his chair again. "Now … Kyla. I give you a chance to redeem yourself."

 

"Father?" Kyla rose to her feet again and stumbled towards Ben.

 

"Kill him."

 

"What? Father, no- please."

 

"Kill him and your sins are forgiven." Snoke snorted a laugh. "She tried to kill your mother, Ben Solo. Did you know that? I ordered her to do the deed- and she did it. That is why your attempt to turn her will fail. She is but an extension of my being now. She obeys me because she has always obeyed me. Because I am the one person who never abandoned her. The one person who never hurt her-"

 

"Until today," Ben said grimly, looking into Kyla's eyes. "I don't blame her for what she did. You've been in her head since she was a child. Poisoning her so much that she thought you loved her. And now she knows the truth, Snoke. She's seen your true face."

 

"She is my daughter. She will obey me. Her will is mine. Her thoughts are mine."

 

Kyla drew her light saber. "I know what I have to do."

 

"I cannot be betrayed because I can see into her mind. She is grieving. She is in pain, but she knows what she has to do. To save herself, she will kill the person she loves most in the universe. She will-"

 

And Anakin's light saber cut Snoke in half.

 

The stunned Praetorian Guards drew their weapons and attacked.

 

Kyla fell to her knees. "Father!"

 

Ben called Anakin's light saber to him. "Kyla! We have to fight!"

 

Kyla rose to her feet and picked up her blood red saber. "Yes. We have to." Her voice sounded dead and drained.

 

It all became a blur to Ben. They fought back to back. He felt Kyla's hand on his thigh as she used him to spring towards the attack. He dodged and parried weapons that a light saber could not destroy. He could see Kyla out of the corner of his eye. She fought like a madwoman, drawing on the strength of the Dark to devastate her enemies.

 

In fact, Ben watched her too closely.. his last enemy managed to grab him in a choking hold.

 

Kyla watched. She stared at him as if unsure what to do next.

 

Ben's left eye went golden as he called upon the power of the Dark and he twisted his hand about, summoning lightning to blast his captor's head off. "Kyla?"

 

Kyla didn't look at him. She walked over to Snoke's body and gently turned his torso face up. She tenderly closed his eyes and flicked a switch on the throne.

 

The monitor displayed the Resistance's shuttles being destroyed as they attempted to reach a world that a faint memory told Ben was called Crait. "Kyla, you have to call off the fleet. There's still a chance to save them before we go."

 

"I can't go, Ben. I have to finish this." Kyla looked at him. " _We_ have to finish this. We have to end this war. Once the Resistance is gone, we can rule together. We can bring the balance the Galaxy needs. We can make sure that no children are abandoned by their parents- that no children are _enslaved."_

 

"Kyla, no. You're still holding onto your past. Your old losses. You have to let them go. You have to let them die. It's the only way. You have to forgive the past."

 

"Please don't do this, Ben. Please don't fight me. I killed Father for you. For _us._ We can make all this mean something. If we go away- if we walk away- the war will just continue. There will never be balance. We have to do this. We have to take command. It's what the Force wants."

 

"You're right, Kyla. We can't walk away." Ben sighed. "But I can't let the Resistance be destroyed. Spare them. Save them. And we'll figure out what to do next."

 

"You're still trying to tell me what to do- what to be! You're choosing them over me! Over what we could have!" Kyla raised her hand- and Anakin's light saber flew from Ben's hand.

 

"No! Kyla! Don't!" Ben raised his own hand and the light saber stopped between them.

 

They had no more words. Neither of them could spare the breath. The light saber quivered between them. Caught between two irresistible forces, it shivered … cracked … and _exploded._

 

Right when the _Raddus_ collided with the _Supremacy._

 

Anakin Skywalker appeared an instant before his light saber's destruction. He stood before Ben and raised his arms up. _"No!"_

 

Kyla was hurled back by the blast, but Ben remained on his feet.

 

Anakin … was gone.

 

"Anakin?" Ben whispered uncertainly. "Grandfather?" He reached out into the Force, searching for the powerful beacon of light and shadow that was Anakin Skywalker.

 

And found _nothing._

 

"No," Ben whispered. "Oh no. _Grandfather."_

 

Can a dead man die? Was Anakin Skywalker gone forever?

 

Ben wanted to grieve. He wanted to search for his grandfather's spirit again, but he did not have time. He rushed to Kyla. Frantically, he checked her for life signs and sighed with relief when he saw she was still breathing and she had not been seriously injured by the explosion.

 

Ben glanced back at the monitor. Whatever had just happened, the last of the Resistance shuttles had made it to safety. He did not know how long he had before someone came in search of Snoke. He glanced at the the throne's controls and saw there was an escape pod nearby.

 

Good. They could use that...

 

No. It wasn't big enough for the both of them. There wouldn't be enough air for two people. They'd suffocate.

 

This was Kyla's home. She had made her choice. He couldn't force her to come with him.

 

He couldn't take her with him. He couldn't kill her. Even if it meant trouble down the line, he could not kill her. He did what he could to make her comfortable and kissed her gently on the lips. "I love you, Kyla. I think I was born to love you. But I can't stay here. Come back to me. Please. Find a way back to me."

 

And with a heavy heart, he attached her light saber back to her belt, gathered up the shattered pieces of Anakin's, and made his way to the escape pod.

 

..**..

 

The Force whispered of the danger to her as her eyes awakened.

 

 

Hux.

 

The General had drawn his blaster. He had meant to murder her while she was unconscious. The fool.

 

Kyla waved her hand and the pistol flew into her hand. "Where is he?" she demanded.

 

"Where is who?" Hux glared at her and looked again at the ruined throne room. "Supreme Leader Snoke is dead! The Praetorian Guard has been murdered. What did you do, Ren?!"

 

"Where is Ben Solo?" Kyla looked at him, and her eyes were a burning gold. "He slaughtered the Guard. He murdered Father. Where is he?"

 

"I don't know," Hux admitted. "I will make finding him my top priority as new Supreme Leader-"

 

"You? Supreme Leader?" Kyla glared at him. She gestured and the general was forced to his knees. She clutched her fist and he began to choke.

 

"I mean you are Supreme Leader, Kyla Ren," he managed to force out. "You are the proper heir, of course."

 

"Of course I am." Kyla let the man breathe again. "I want all available men and equipment ready for planetary landing. The Resistance landed on that world.. Once we destroy them, there will be no one left to stand against the First Order."

 

"What about Solo?"

 

"If he isn't there now, he soon will be. He has nowhere left to go."

 

She was angry, but also curiously calm. She had killed Father for Ben to be free for him. Now she would have to kill his mother and everyone else that stood between them. Once Ben had no one else to care for, to protect, he would realize that his place was at her side.

 

Kyla placed a discrete hand on her belly. "And with you," she whispered to her unborn child.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rey- or Kyla Ren as she is in this AU- has always struck me as being more strong-willed than Ben. I think in her shoes, Kyla would abandon the First Order so long as Ben didn't require her to join the Resistance. And if she hadn't seen Snoke's true face before he died, she might have been content to run away with Ben. 
> 
> Hope you guys enjoyed this scene. I had fun writing it. 8-)


	20. Chapter 20

The Resistance barely made it to Crait before the First Order landed on the world. The Resistance worked frantically to cobble together some sort of defense … to buy time for their call to go out … for their rescue to come.

 

Kyla smirked. She knew the Galaxy. She knew no one would come … no one except Ben Solo. And when Ben was there, she would make sure he saw her destroy the Resistance … destroy any other connection he had in the Galaxy. His mother. That traitorous Stormtrooper. The Wookie. Anyone who had claim to his heart would be annihilated.

 

She rested a hand on her stomach momentarily. When he knew about their child, he would come to her. She was certain of that. "General Hux, has Phasma been located?"

 

"Yes, Supreme Leader." Hux practically choked the words out, but he said them nonetheless. "She was burned, but her armor preserved her life. She is being treated as we speak."

 

"Good. Very good." _And perhaps she will receive a promotion soon. I am not a fool, Armitage Hux. I know you covet my newly won throne. I am not Father; I do not need you to accomplish my own goals._ "Any sign of the _Falcon_?"

 

"Not yet. Are you certain-?"

 

"I am. Do not question me. Prepare the cannon. We can begin our assault now, but General Organa is not to be harmed until I give the word."

 

"Yes, Supreme Leader."

 

And of course the Resistance counterattacked. Using rickety old equipment that looked like it would fall apart before they even reached Kyla's location, they still charged forth leaving trails of red behind them like blood.

 

Such a waste.

 

Kyla knew now that this was her destiny. She had come from nothing … she had been nothing. Father had raised her up. Ben had helped remove the blinders from her eyes that her daughter's heart had placed. But ultimately, both of the them had failed her.

 

She had been nothing, but now she was so much more. She was the Chosen One. She was the one the Galaxy had been waiting for.

 

"They'll try to reach the cannon," Hux warned her.

 

"See to it they don't make it." Kyla reached out into the Force. Searching for him … searching for Ben. Had Father been telling the truth? Was there Bond simply his creation? Had it died with Snoke?

 

No. She didn't believe that. She couldn't. She had dreamed of Ben Solo before she had met him. Not even Father could see the future that clearly.

 

No.

 

It was _real._ They were real.

 

Her TIE Fighters were blasting the snow speeders apart with all the efficiency she expected from the First Order. She barely blinked at the lives winking out now. They were becoming one with the Force; and it was necessary for her to bring order to a chaotic Galaxy.

 

And then one of the TIEs exploded in flame.

 

The _Millennium Falcon_ at last.

 

Ben was on that ship. She could feel him. Feel his pain... and determination to preserve the Resistance.

 

 _So you chose a side at last, my love._ "General Hux, send those TIE Fighters after that piece of junk. Force it down to a landing- but if they destroy it, I will kill you. Do you hear me?"

 

"I hear you, Supreme Leader." Hux barked orders into his com.

 

Kyla fingered the hilt of her light saber. It wouldn't be long now. "Time for old things to die, Ben. You'll understand once it's over."

 

..**..

 

She was there.

 

Ben gritted his teeth and tried to keep his defenses up. He could not talk to Kyla now. He could not afford the distraction. "Chewie! We have to pull them away from the speeders! Give them a shot at that damn cannon!"

 

 _"Just make sure they don't blow us out of the sky, kid!"_ Chewbacca ordered as he maneuvered the _Falcon_ like a fighter rather than a freighter. The old ship howled in protest, but but she held together.

 

Ben fired and destroyed another TIE. "We need a miracle if we're going to get the Resistance out of here!"

 

..**..

 

Kyla smiled as one speeder knocked the other out of its suicide run. The odds of the suicider actually managing to do harm to the cannon were slim, but for a moment she wondered what sentiment had driven the second pilot to sacrifice themselves for someone so bent on self destruction? A sibling? A parent or child? Possibly a lover?

 

She dismissed the thought. "Fire the cannon!"

 

The cannon melted through the doors of the Resistance's last stronghold like a light saber through butter.

 

"General, we advance. Remember, Organa is the only one we spare." _If I have her, you will come to me even if you escape the TIE Fighters, Ben. I know you well._

 

And then a man stepped out of the gates and walked towards them. He stooped in front of them as though he meant to oppose them all by himself. He ignited a light saber.

 

"Skywalker," Hux whispered. "It has to be Luke Skywalker."

 

Kyla stared at him in amazement. How had he gotten here so quickly? Had he joined the Resistance while Ben distracted Father? "I want every gun we have trained on that man. Fire!"

 

"Fire!" Hux echoed.

 

The First Order unleashed hell on that one man.

 

But Kyla did not feel his death as she would have expected. A Jedi Master like that should have gone out like a dying star. How could she feel nothing? "More!"

 

And still she felt nothing.

 

"Enough!" Hux finally snapped. "Cease firing!"

 

And Skywalker was still there. He brushed his shoulder as though removing a speck of dirt. He looked up at them. He was waiting.

 

Waiting for her.

 

"Remain here. I will deal with this man."

 

"Supreme Leader, this is folly. We just need to destroy the Resistance and our victory will be assured!"

 

Kyla gestured and slammed Hux into a wall without even looking at him.

 

"Landing now, Supreme Leader," the pilot declared calmly.

 

She walked across the sandy surface. Dropping her cloak and swinging her blood red light saber. "Luke Skywalker. The Last Jedi. We meet at last. Have you come to save me the way Ben wanted you to? Have you come to redeem me?"

 

"No." Luke stared at her with impassive eyes. "Rey ..."

 

"That is _not_ my name!"

 

"I _am_ sorry, Rey. You were meant for better than this."

 

"I am so much more than that little scavenger, Luke Skywalker. The Resistance is finished. The War is over. When I kill you, the Jedi will be no more."

 

"Amazing," Luke said with a smirk. "Everything you just said is wrong. The Rebellion is reborn. The war is just beginning. And I will not be the last Jedi." He looked at her, and a strangely gentle smile touched his lips. "Rey … the Jedi will return- through _you._ "

 

"You're insane!" Kyla spat. "Ben is not the chosen one. I have _chosen_ to lead. He will stand at my side or kneel at my feet. My child- _our_ child- will follow _my_ path not yours. Take that knowledge with you into death!"

 

"Strike me down in anger and I will be with you always- just like Snoke."

 

"No. Father is dead. He will trouble me no more. And neither will you!"

 

And Kyla charged.

 

..**..

 

"There, Chewie!" Ben pointed at the animals fleeing from a fissure lost among the rocks. "That's where they are! That's how we free them!"

 

 _"Can you do it, Ben?"_ Chewbacca whined.

 

"I have to. I have to." Ben made his way down from the _Falcon_ to the rocks. "And I have to do it quietly."

 

He reached into the Force. _Please let this work._ "It's just a bunch of rocks, right? I can do this without blasting them into powder..."

 

Gently, gingerly … for the Light was as much a part of him as the Dark and he did not _have_ to destroy … he levitated the rocks into mid-air.

 

Finn and Poe were the first ones out. Finn rushed to his side and hugged him tightly. "I _knew_ you'd be back!" the ex-Stormtrooper cried.

 

"Can't leave my second mate behind, can I?" Ben kept his mind focused on the rocks.

 

"Afraid I'm going to have to take a pass on that." Finn grinned. "I'm Rebel Scum now. I've got so much to tell you, Ben ..."

 

"Later, Finn." Poe took the younger man's hand. He nodded at Ben. "We can talk once everyone is safely aboard the _Falcon._

 

Ben held the rocks aloft as the others filed through. A woman paused and looked at him- she looked vaguely familiar- before heading into the _Falcon._

 

Finally, his mother hobbled out. She walked over to him and embraced him. "Ben ..."

 

Gently, he lowered the rocks. "Mom." He held her onto her like a drowning man would clutch an outcropping of rock. "Mom ..."

 

"I'm here, Ben. I'm here." Gently, his mother took Ben's hand and led him up to the _Falcon._

 

..**..

 

Her light saber went through Luke Skywalker like she was trying to kill a hologram.

 

"Be seeing you, kid." Skywalker winked at her and vanished.

 

"No!" Kyla howled. "No!" She rushed into the base without waiting for her soldiers.

 

It was empty. On the floor by a chair were golden dice on a chain. She picked them up and felt them fade away …

 

And then she felt _Ben._

 

They looked at each other. He was standing near the _Falcon,_ about to close the hatch. He looked at her like a stranger … as though they meant nothing to each other … as though they had not made love just a few short hours ago.

 

 _Ben,_ she cried out soundlessly.

 

 _Kyla._ His eyes were filled with bitterness. _You chose a path I can't follow. I'll stop you. I'll stop the First Order. This can't happen. I won't let it happen._

 

_I'm pregnant, Ben._

 

His eyes widened.

 

_I'm carrying your child. If you leave now, you aren't just leaving me. You're leaving your own flesh and blood. Don't make me destroy you. Come back. Come back._

 

He'd heard that voice … that desperate longing for so long now. It had echoed through mind and his heart … piercing him as completely as any light saber ever could. He never imagined that he could turn his back on that plea.

 

But he had no choice.

 

_I'm sorry._

 

And he closed the hatch.

 

The dice faded.

 

And Kyla knew she had been abandoned once more.

 

..**...

 

A baby.

 

Force!

 

A baby.

 

He was going to be a father. And just like Han, he wouldn't be there.

 

"Ben? Ben Solo?" The woman who had looked at him outside the _Falcon_ came up to him. She smiled at him. "Force, I'm glad to see you again. Don't you remember me?" She held out her hand. "Kay. Kay Connix."

 

"Kay?" In spite of the dire situation, a smile touched his lips. "I haven't seen you since we were kids."

 

She hugged him tightly. "Thank you- for everything."

 

Ben nodded. "Couldn't have done it without Chewie." He sighed. "I'd love a chance to talk later, but right now ..."

 

"I understand." She stood on tiptoe to kiss his cheek. "I'll talk to you later, Ben."

 

And she walked away.

 

Poe watched her go with a frown. _Really, Kay?_

 

Ben sat down on a bench and watched Finn out of the corner of his eye. He wrapping a wounded girl in a blanket. His face was anxious, worried … and very tender.

 

It reminded him of Kyla.

 

The smile faded from his lips and Ben sighed.

 

"It'll be all right, Ben." Leia came over and sat down beside him.

 

"Will it?" Ben looked at her sadly. "Luke … did you feel it?"

 

"Yes." Leia sighed. "He's gone now."

 

"The Last Jedi is gone. Kyla is pregnant with my child-"

 

"I know. She told me."

 

"She told you-?"

 

"It's a long story." Leia laid her head on her son's shoulders. "Ben, I have no right to ask this of you- but we need you. The Resistance needs your help if we're going to stop the First Order."

 

"I know. I'm not a warrior. I'm not a Jedi Master. But I'll do what I can to help." He laughed bitterly and showed Leia the broken pieces of Anakin's light saber. "But I don't even have a light saber."

 

"You do." Leia unclipped his training saber from her belt. "When we lost you … I held onto this as the only reminder I had of my son. It's time for you to pick it up once more."

 

Ben sighed and closed his fingers around the hilt. "Do you really think we can win, Mom? We have practically nothing left to fight with."

 

Leia smiled at him and looked around. "We have everything we need, Ben. We have each other. And we have hope. Rebellions are built on hope."

 

"And the future-?" Ben couldn't stop himself from asking.

 

"The future is built on love." Leia kissed her son's cheek. "The future is built on love."

 


	21. Killing the Past and Watching It Die

_Three months later …_

 

She returned alone to Jakku.

 

She was clad in her dark robes, but she no longer wore a mask to conceal her beautiful features. She walked the sands of the planet she had spent most of her life on with an impassive face. Her light saber was attached to her belt. She walked like nothing or no one could touch her.

 

Even after all this time, she found her feet still knew the way to Niima Outpost.

 

The way to Unkar Plutt.

It was impossible for a woman like Kyla Ren to escape notice … even on a world like Jakku. She was aware that a crowd of scavengers … the half-starved men, women, and children who earned their pitiful small living from pleasing Plutt … were gathering behind her.

 

They did not approach her. They did not seek to talk to her. They certainly did not dare try to touch her. They just followed her.

 

Plutt had even more thugs than he had the last time she saw him, Kyla noticed. Obviously the First Order's attack on Jakku had made the old Blobfish even more paranoid than he had been before.

 

Kyla smiled.

 

They wouldn't save him.

 

She watched Plutt's men gather. Soon, there was roughly a score of them.

 

"What do you want here?" the largest of the thugs asked. He was hooded- they were all hooded, but Kyla recognized the voice as belonging to Plutt's right hand man. "Who are you?"

 

"My name is Kyla Ren."

 

They stared at her blankly. They stared at each other. "You're lying."

 

"No. I'm not."

 

"Kyla Ren," one of the scavengers whispered behind her. "The Supreme Leader herself!"

 

"But she looks like that girl …" one of them argued. "You know … the one that used to live in the AT-AT. Rey … something."

 

Kyla did not move. She did not look behind her. Her face remained expressionless.

 

But the scavenger who called her "Rey" began to choke, clawing frantically at his throat.

 

Kyla waited for a moment, then released her hold on him. "My name is Kyla Ren."

 

This time no one said a thing.

 

"What do you want?" the main bodyguard asked again, this time sounding considerably less sure of himself.

 

"Unkar Plutt. Out here. Talking to me. Right now."

 

"The boss don't come at nobody's beck and call."

 

Kyla ignited her light saber and in one smooth movement beheaded him. "Anyone else care to argue the point?"

 

No one did.

 

"I suggest you bring him out here if he's not willing to come out on his own." Kyla smiled faintly. "Otherwise I'll just hurl your bodies at his door until it breaks."

 

One of the smarter henchmen scrambled for the main thug's body and grabbed a key chain off it. He nodded to the others and rushed to Plutt's door. They forced the door open and ran inside.

 

A moment later, they dragged a cursing Unkar Plutt out.

 

He stared at her and mouthed her old name- but didn't say it. Apparently one of the guards must have warned him. "W-what do you want from me, Your Supreme Leadership?"

 

"Your portions. Your water. All of it. Bring it out here. Now."

 

Plutt blanched then looked at his guards. "You heard her! Move!"

 

They moved to obey.

 

"Not them. You."

 

Plutt looked ready to argue, but one look in her cold eyes convinced him otherwise. He went into the trading post and returned with a chest of portions. He went back in and rolled out a barrel of water. He looked at her hopefully.

 

"All of it, Plutt. I'll know if you're holding out on me. Bring it all out."

 

It was early morning on Jakku when Kyla arrived. By the time, the Blobfish finished his task, it was high noon.

 

"That's all I have here," Unkar Plutt panted. A creature from an aquatic world, hours spent under the blazing sun of Jakku had left him physically wrecked … and would have even without all the unusual (for him) physical exertion.

 

Kyla Ren nodded. She turned to the scavengers. "You all get a share, but I'll be watching. If you try to take more than your share- or take a share from the children- I will kill you."

 

"You can't do this!" Plutt demanded angrily. "Those are _my_ goods."

 

"The days when you could tell me what I can or can't do are long past, Unkar Plutt." She raised her light saber to his throat. The tip just barely touched … causing the fat flesh of his jowls to burn.

 

He whimpered, but did not try to move.

 

"You're going to watch this. You're going to watch as I give away everything that gave you power. You're going to watch as I tear down your little kingdom."

 

It took another three hours for Unkar Plutt's fortune to be given away. Kyla kept one eye on the Blobfish and the other on the scavengers who nervously came up to pick up his goods. They cast a frightened look at Plutt- and another at her.

 

Finally, when the last of the portions were gone, the scavengers filed away.

 

"You've done nothing for them," Plutt told her. "The strong will take from the weak, and I'll take it all back from them. This was all for nothing."

 

"I didn't do it to help them," Kyla said. _But at least tonight they'll all go to sleep with full bellies._ "I had one last debt to pay the girl I had been."

 

"What's that?" Plutt asked her fearfully.

 

"To kill my past."

 

Kyla's light saber flashed again.

 

The body of the Blobfish fell down in two pieces.

 

She looked at the bodyguards. "Run. If you're here ten seconds from now I will kill you all."

 

They didn't stay to argue the point. They all ran for their lives.

 

Kyla walked into Plutt's Outpost. It was the work of just a few minutes for her to set fire to the building. She walked out.

 

She watched the building burn.

 

"Goodbye, Rey of Jakku. Plutt won't hurt anyone ever again." Kyla placed her hand on her belly. She felt the slightest of bulges. She knew that almost no one would be able to tell that she was pregnant yet- it was a secret that she had kept from Hux and the First Order. She knew that she wouldn't be able to hide it forever, but she did not want to make it public just yet. The child would be her heir, and that would make Hux even more desperate to replace her.

 

"You won't grow up like me, little one," she whispered to her baby. "You will never be nothing. You're going to rule an empire when I'm done. But first … first I will need to gather a new army. It's time for the Knights of Ren to serve their master once more."

 

She patted her belly fondly and then walked back to her ship.

 

..**..

 

Leia was dying.

 

Ben Solo sat on the right side of his mother's sickbed, holding her hand. Poe Dameron on the left holding the other. She smiled at both of them. "My two boys."

 

Poe looked at Ben hopefully. Perhaps there was something the other man could do with the Force to save or at least prolong Leia's life?

 

Sadly, Ben shook his head.

 

Finn, Rose Tico, Kay Connix, and Chewbacca were standing at the other end of the crude log cabin that was destined to be the last mortal residence of Leia Organa Solo.

 

"We should try to take you to Coruscant or one of the other worlds," Poe urged Leia softly. "There's still time."

 

"There isn't, Poe." Leia squeezed his hand weakly. "It's my time. I can feel it. I don't mind. I've lived a good life. I'm surrounded by the people I love who love me." Her gaze flickered back to Ben. "And my son came home." She coughed for several minutes.

"The only thing I regret is that I'm leaving this fight behind for the rest of you."

 

"You've done enough, Mom." Ben reached out and gently stroked his mother's forehead. She had lost most of her hair thanks to the radiation exposure she had undergone from her brief sojourn in space. "More than enough. We'll finish what you started."

 

"I know you will. I have faith in you all. Ben-"

 

"I'm not cut out to lead this Resistance, Mom," Ben said gently. "I'm not you."

 

"That's good," Leia snorted. "Because I'm giving the job to Poe."

 

"Me?" Poe asked her in shock. "But I made so many mistakes ..."

 

"You've learned from them, Poe. That's the important thing." Leia smiled at him. "You have what it takes to lead the Resistance to victory. It won't be easy- and it won't necessarily be as fast as you'd like. Remember, it took more than 20 years for the Rebellion to overthrow the Empire. I hope this war won't take that long- but I know you'll never give up. You have the heart to lead." She glanced over at Ben. "But that doesn't mean you don't have an important role to play, Ben. You're the closest thing we have to a Jedi- and you're both a Solo and a Skywalker. The Galaxy will look to you for hope-"

 

"I'm not a Jedi, Mom." Ben squeezed her hand. "But I'll do my best."

 

"I know you will." She looked at Poe and Ben once more, and then glanced over at the others. "You've all worked so hard- done so much. It's not fair to ask you to do more, but I'm afraid you'll have to. Chewie, keep my son safe."

 

 _"As if he were my own,"_ Chewbacca promised in a growl.

 

"They will need your strength- your experience. Thank you for everything you've done for my family, Chewie- for _our_ family." She smiled at the Wookie.

 

The Wookie came to her bedside and pressed his forehead against hers. Then he stepped back.

 

"Kay ..."

 

The blonde woman stepped forward. Her eyes were filled with tears. "General-"

 

"You've been like a daughter to me, Kay. I can never thank you enough for everything you've done- for the Resistance and for me." She smiled faintly. "Be happy."

 

"I'll try." Kay kissed Leia's forehead.

 

"Rose-"

 

The young woman nervously took Kay's place. The blonde squeezed her shoulder before stepping back. "General-"

 

"When you were injured, Finn told us that you said we would win this war by saving what we love." Leia smiled at her. "All of you should keep that message in your hearts. It's the people like you, Rose- your sister, your family- you are who we are fighting for. Thank you."

 

"General- I'm just a technician."

 

"You'll never be _just_ anything, Rose." Leia smiled at her. She held a hand out to the younger woman.

 

Rose took it and pressed it to her cheek before stepping back, tears filling her eyes.

 

"Finn ..."

 

The ex-Storm Trooper stepped forward. "General."

 

"you've got the heart of a Rebel, Finn." Leia smiled at him. "I am grateful for your dedication to the cause."

 

"We'll make the First Order pay, ma'am. I promise you."

 

Leia smiled at him faintly. "When I was young, I had that righteous fire of indignation in my heart too. You're a good man, Finn. And strong. I have no doubt that you are loyal to the Resistance. She smiled gently at him. "Just remember, it's not enough to defeat our enemy- you have to fight _for_ something as well. You have to fight for a future. Allow yourself the luxury of hope, Finn."

 

"I'll try, ma'am." Finn saluted her and offered her a gentle smile before stepping back. He cast a sympathetic glance at both Poe and Ben.

 

Leia sighed. "It's time, everyone. I may not be with you physically any more, but never doubt that I will be with you in spirit. All of you." Leia smiled at them all and then closed her eyes.

 

For a moment, the room was silent.

 

She drew a breath.

 

And then another.

 

She did not draw a third.

 

Her body seemed to shimmer for a moment, and then it faded away leaving nothing behind but her clothing.

 

"What the kriff-?" Poe whispered in grief and awe.

 

"She's one with the Force now." Ben laid a comforting hand on the other man's shoulder. "Excuse me everyone." He got up and walked out of the cabin and into the thick forest of Endor. He slumped against a tree. "Mother ..."

 

The pain and grief brought him to his knees.

 

And then he felt _it._

 

A whisper in the Force … as though a door had been opened.

 

"Ben ..."

 

Ben Solo opened his eyes.

 

Kyla Ren stood before him. "The bond ..."

 

"... is still there," Ben finished for her.

 

And they stared at each other like the lovers they wished they were.

 


	22. Opposite Sides

Ben's eyes flickered down to her stomach. The words came out almost unconsciously. "The baby?"

 

"It's fine." Kyla placed her hands protectively on her stomach.

 

"I'm glad." He looked at her. His hand reached out to touch her face, but he pulled it back. "How are you?"

 

"I'm fine." She looked at him. "Ben … I sense your pain and grief. What's wrong?"

 

"My mother." Ben closed his eyes. "She's … gone."

 

"I'm sorry." Kyla touched his face with her metallic one … the clawed fingers somehow feeling warmer than they should have. "I know she was important to you."

 

Ben felt himself leaning into that touch. _You tried to kill her, Kyla,_ he thought to himself. _I should be angry with you. I should hate you. But I_ _ **can't.**_ "Thank you."

 

As if sensing his thoughts, Kyla turned her back on him. "And what happens to your Resistance now?"

 

_It's not my Resistance,_ Ben almost replied, but he knew that was no longer true. "We stop the First Order from dominating the Galaxy."

 

"Are there even two dozen of you left, Ben?" Kyla asked him sarcastically. "What do really think will happen? The best your little band of misfits can accomplish is some small act of terror here or there. If the Galaxy would not heed the call of Leia Organa, what makes you think they will listen to a failed Jedi?" She scoffed. "You don't even have a light saber."

 

"That's where you're wrong." Ben drew his light saber and ignited it.

 

Kyla moved back and drew her own. "Where did that come from?"

 

"It was the one I made at the Jedi Academy. My mother kept it for me all the years that I was gone. It doesn't have the storied history of my grandfather, but it will do." He deactivated it. "And I don't want to fight you, Kyla."

 

He didn't put it away, though.

 

"Nor I you." Kyla lowered her weapon. "I don't want to kill you, Ben. You can still come back to me. To our child."

 

"I can't do that, Kyla," Ben told her regretfully. "The First Order—"

 

"- you can't stop me, Ben. You can't stop the First Order. You can't destroy my destiny."

 

"And just what is that?" Ben asked her. "To grind the galaxy under your heel? I know that you've never craved power. The only reason you did the things that you've- all the terrible things that you've done- was to please Snoke-"

 

"To please my father, you mean."

 

"Snoke wasn't your father-"

 

"He was more my father than the man who sired me." Kyla looked away. "My parents. They were nothing, Ben. Drunken paupers who sold me to Unkar Plutt and never looked back. Say what you want to about him, but Father made me feel loved." She sighed. "And I killed him because I couldn't bear to lose you."

 

"You did what you had to," Ben told her gently. "It's not too late, Kyla. You can join me. Join the Resistance. With your help, we could stop the First Order and save the Galaxy."

 

"Save the Galaxy for what, Ben? The New Republic left the worlds of the Outer Rim to rot. It let countless Plutts rule over their little kingdoms while the New Republic declined to get involved. I have not forgotten what my life was like on Jakku."

 

"I know it was a terrible place, Kyla. I spent time there, remember?"

 

"I made it a better place." There was no small look of satisfaction on her face. "Plutt will buy no more child slaves. Or adult ones for that matter."

 

"You killed him." Ben's face went expressionless.

 

"Do you weep for him?" Kyla asked him whimsically.

 

"Force, no. He was a monster. I just wish-" He sighed. "I just wish that you had not had to go through that life. I wish I had known you earlier."

 

"So do I," Kyla admitted softly. "Though it might have made this"- and she touched her stomach- "impossible if you had known me as a child."

 

"There is that," Ben nodded.

 

They looked at each other and smiled sadly.

 

"This is all kriffed up," Ben said softly. "Kyla, I don't want to fight you. I want to be with you- but I can't be with you while you're leading the First Order. Does power really mean all that much to you?"

 

"It's not power for myself, Ben." Kyla looked at him. "The Galaxy is suffering. While you and I stand here, the poor are being oppressed. Children are being enslaved. Children are being murdered. I intend to stop that. I intend to bring justice to everyone. To fight for those who can't fight for themselves." Her eyes shone with passion. "To make sure that no other little girl is ever sold by her parents again."

 

"Kyla, no one can do that. Not for everyone in the Galaxy. Even at the height of their power the Jedi were not able to do that."

 

"I am not the Jedi. I will not be so … kind. The Galaxy will submit to me- one way or the other."

 

"Kyla, you're not a monster-"

 

"You said differently- once."

 

"Yes. I did." He could not bring himself to apologize considering what Kyla had done to him at that moment. "This will destroy you, Kyla. The things you would have to do to get that kind of control- you'd be no better than Palpatine."

 

"I'll be better. _My_ rule will never end."

 

"Everyone dies, Kyla. Even if you manage to do this- even with the best of intentions- the mechanism you leave in place will degenerate into tyranny."

 

"I will leave my child in charge." Kyla looked at him. " _Our_ child. That potent Skywalker blood of yours- our child will be a Titan among the stars."

 

"You'll try to make it into another Darth Vader."

 

"A thousand times better than Vader ever was. Our child will _rule_."

 

"You can't do this, Kyla. The First Order isn't large enough to do this."

 

"I have more than the First Order. I have the Knights of Ren."

 

Ben rolled his eyes. "What makes you think a handful of Force users will be enough to rule the Galaxy- even with the First Order behind them."

 

"I will have more than a handful, Ben. I am going to find them."

 

"Them?"

 

"The other Force sensitives in the Galaxy. I will find them. I will train them. They will serve me. They will serve my vision. They will help me bring order to the Galaxy. Wherever they are- whoever they are- they will help me."

 

"Not all of them will take your side."

 

"Those who won't fight for me-" Kyla shrugged. "There are other ways they can be of use. Breeding stock, if nothing else."

 

Ben clenched his fists. "You're talking about enslaving others. The very thing you just told me you wanted to put an end to."

 

"Sometimes a few have to suffer for the good of the many. The Galaxy needs order."

 

"Order at the tip of a light saber? From the barrel of a photon cannon?"

 

"If necessary. The New Republic was weak-"

 

"They just needed more time! My mother spent years trying to bring peace to the Galaxy-"

 

"Years she spent away from you. Years that were ultimately a failure- years that drove you away from her when you needed her the most. I will never _abandon_ our child."

 

"You can't do this, Kyla. I won't let you do this. I won't let you turn our daughter into a monster."

 

"Daughter?" Kyla pounced on the word.

 

"On Ahch-To I had a vision of a little girl. You picked her up, and I knew that she was ours. Both of ours."

 

"A daughter," Kyla murmured. "I had a feeling that I was carrying a daughter, but I hadn't found out for sure. A daughter." A smile touched her lips. "We're going to have a daughter, Ben."

 

"It was just a vision."

 

"That doesn't mean it's not true." She touched his face. "I love you."

 

"I love you too," Ben admitted. "Please, Kyla. Don't do this. Don't go this way. You want to bring peace to the Galaxy. If that's true, work with the Resistance. There has to be another way. A better way than conquest."

 

"Ben ..." Kyla kissed him gently. "Conquest is the only thing that's ever worked." She backed away from him and deactivated her light saber. "Walk away. You can't stop me. The Resistance can't stop me. I'll let you live. I'll even let your Resistance friends live. But if you choose to fight ..."

 

She let the words trail off.

 

"It doesn't have to be this way," Ben told her gently. "You're still holding onto what Snoke made you become. You can be something else. You can be _better._ Just take my hand, Kyla. Just take my hand ..."

 

"I can't, Ben. Everything I've done- my entire life- was in preparation for this moment. There's a reason I have this power. I didn't inherit it like you. I was _given_ it by the Force. The Force wants me to bring balance to the Galaxy. Not just in the Force itself- but  in the Galaxy as a whole. I'm going to bring peace, Ben- but before there can be peace, there will have to be _war._ "

 

"Kyla- No."

 

There were tears in her eyes. "We both want the same thing. We both want peace. We both want to be together. And yet …"

 

"And yet here are on. On opposite sides of a war." Ben sighed. "I love you, Kyla. I love you more than anyone or anything else in this entire universe- but I will stop you."

 

"You will try."

 

They stared at each other a moment longer, and then she faded away.

 

Ben fell to his knees. He covered his face. And let the tears flow.

 

"Ben?"

 

Kaydel Connix. His mother's assistant walked over to him. "When you didn't come back, we got worried." She laid a hand on his shoulder. " _I_ got worried."

 

He squeezed her hand. "Thank you, Kay." He forced himself to his feet. _I'm not a warrior. I'm not a Jedi. This is what I ran from. But this is where I have to be._ "I need to talk to Poe. I know what Kyla is planning."

 

"Do you know how to stop her?"

 

"That I don't know," Ben admitted. "But we _will_ stop her."

 

_I have to stop you, Kyla. Not just for the Galaxy- not even just for you. I have to stop you so our child doesn't grow up to become a monster. I won't let you do that- I won't let you bring another Darth Vader to the Galaxy. No matter what it takes, I will stop you._

 

_Or die trying._

 


	23. The Knights of Ren

Phasma floated in the bacta tank like a drowned woman.

 

Armitage Hux stood with one hand on the tank, staring up at her. For once, his face was devoid of the fury and contempt that peppered his features. He placed a hand on the tank. "Phasma ..."

 

Kyla Ren walked silently into the room and held up a hand to warn the medical droids not to announce her presence. She walked to Hux's side. "Her status?"

 

"Supreme Leader." Hux's voice was also devoid of its usual venom. "Her burns are severe. Her lungs were seared by the chemical vapors she inhaled. Her condition is the point where Supreme Leader Snoke … _former_ Supreme Leader Snoke allowed medical care. I formally request that her end be made as painless as possible ..."

 

"Father is no longer Supreme Leader … _Armitage._ " Kyla stared up at the tank and laid her metal hand against it. "I am. And Phasma is my friend and ally. I authorize any and all necessary expenses be paid to restore her to full health."

 

Hux blinked and looked at her. Was that _gratitude?_ "That is … generous of you, Supreme Leader."

 

"I am not Father, Armitage. I am capable of rewarding generosity and loyalty when necessary." She allowed her face to harden momentarily. "As well as punish those who disappoint me."

 

"I understand, Supreme Leader."

 

Kyla glanced at the man at her side. The months following the death of her father (her _murder_ of him a part of whispered late at night when she tried to sleep) had taught her to reevaluate Armitage Hux and his place in the First Order. The man was vain and arrogant, and had made no secret that he believed he should be leading the First Order instead of Kyla herself. More than once, Kyla had nearly reached for her light saber to end the man once and for all...

 

She was glad now that she hadn't.

 

For all his faults, Hux was a tactician and strategist of the first level. He had rallied their troops after the _Raddus_ and given her a fighting force to attack Crait with. The only reason the Resistance had lived to fight another day had been due to the intervention of Luke Skywalker. Kyla was an able hand to hand combatant, a master of the Force, but she knew little about military matters. She needed a general, and no one was more familiar with the First Order's military structure than Hux.

 

Father had preferred that Hux remain a rabid cur, believing that it made him easier to control.

 

Kyla Ren didn't need a mad dog. She needed a loyal one. If she could earn Hux's respect and loyalty, he would be a powerful ally.

 

If she couldn't, then she would have to put him down.

 

But hopefully not before he had done in his part in her plan.

 

"General Hux, have you devised a counter to the Holdo Maneuver?" By using his title, Kyle was bringing the conversation back to the business of running the First Order. She nodded once more to the medical droids and began walking back to the bridge.

 

"I believe I have, Supreme Leader." In addition to his tactical prowess, Hux was also a highly skilled engineer. He had been the one behind the hyper space tracker they had used to harry the Resistance to Crait. "Each of our major ships will be equipped with dedicated sensors and autonomous guns that detect any ship trying to duplicate the Holdo strategy."

 

"Autonomous guns would not have been able to destroy the _Raddus._ "

 

"By themselves, no. But it will alert the crew of the need to focus on a particular ship. It's the best solution I've been able to come up with in the short term."

 

"I see." Kyla frowned. "It's not probable the Resistance will be a threat in the short term, but they have surprised us in the past. See to it, General."

 

"Yes, Supreme Leader."

 

"And, General?"

 

"Yes?"

 

"Well done." She smiled at him.

 

Hux might not particularly admire or respect her, but he was still male enough to appreciate that she was an attractive young woman. He blushed and looked away. "Thank you, Supreme Leader. I'll see to it immediately."

 

"Send me a progress report as soon as possible." Kyla nodded to him once more and made her way to Father's- no, _her_ throne room.

 

The Knights of Ren were waiting for her.

 

Kyla made her way to the throne and sat down on it, trying to look as though she belonged there. Father had spoken to her of succeeding him one day, but he had never taken particular pains to nurture her ambitions in that direction. Indeed, he had probably done the opposite.

 

But now … now she was Supreme Leader and Master of the Knights of Ren. She was the most powerful person in the Galaxy. And she had plans for how to use that power.

 

The Knights bowed as she took her seat. "You may rise."

 

Sheeva had led the Knights to Snoke the night Father destroyed the Academy. She was about Ben Solo's age, a beautiful woman with bone white skin, blazing red hair, and yellow eyes. She was strong in the Force … strongest of all the Knights except for Kyla herself. She wielded a magenta light saber.

 

Polax was nearly as short as Kyla herself, and not much taller. His light saber was so pale as to be almost pink. He was slender and athletic, and perhaps not entirely sane. The night the Jedi Academy burned, he had murdered his brother Hastur who had refused to turn with him. The act had broken something in him.

 

Minas was the tallest of the Knights, nearly as tall and powerful as Ben Solo. He used a black staff rather a light saber. He was mute, having lost his voice the night he betrayed Luke Skywalker. He was adept at mental attacks, and it was said he could drive men and women to madness without lifting a finger.

 

Nippet was an Ewok and she used an orange light saber. She was incredibly strong, and the best duelist of all the Knights. She had taught Kyla herself how to use a light saber.

 

"We were saddened to hear of the death of Master Snoke," Sheeva said in her smooth, beautiful voice. Kyla could see the challenge in her yellow eyes, and she met it squarely.

 

"Yes. He was destroyed by Ben Solo." It was the truth, after all … from a certain point of view. If Father had not threatened Ben, he would still be alive.

 

"We will have vengeance!" Polax declared in an angry tone of voice.

 

"So Ben Solo is still alive," Royce murmured, idly touching the hilt of his light saber. "I wouldn't have thought that the coward was capable of survival after he abandoned his uncle's academy to us."

 

Kyla fought down the urge to defend Ben. "Do not underestimate him. He is strong in the Force, and he does not limit himself strictly to the Light Side as Luke Skywalker did. He remains a potential threat to all that we might accomplish."

 

"You wish us to find him?" Nippet asked.

 

"That pleasure I keep for myself," Kyla warned them. "I have other duties for you."

 

"We have not completed the missions that Master Snoke sent us on," Sheeva murmured.

 

"I have other concerns, and I have succeeded Father." She looked into Sheeva's eyes. "I need for you to do something else for me."

 

"What is thy bidding, master?" Royce asked, smiling in an ingratiating manner. The young black man was handsome, flirtatious, and charming. Kyla, however was immune to his charms: she had seen the bodies of the women who succumbed to his charms.

 

"Go to Emperor Palpatine's palace … the former Jedi Temple on Coruscant. There are Sith and Jedi holocons there … and something even more valuable for my plans."

 

"What would that be?" Sheeva asked.

 

Kyla glared at her.

 

"Supreme Leader," Sheeva added at last. She was skirting the edge of rebellion, and knew it.

 

"The Jedi had a means of detecting Force users with a simple blood test. Palpatine suppressed knowledge of this device and it's construction after the Jedi Purge. Father, however, remembered it and spoke of it to me. I want one of those devices."

 

"Of what use would such a device be?" Nippet inquired. "The Jedi are no more."

 

"This scanner will allow us to locate Force Sensitive Children."

 

"Any one of us can determine if a child is Force Sensitive," Sheeva replied.

 

"This will allow non Force users to do the job for us," Kyla replied. "We will be raising up an army, and I will need you- all of you- to train them in our ways."

 

"But the Sith-" Polax began.

 

"We are not the Sith. We are the Knights of Ren, and I will build something new. We will bring Order to the Galaxy. We will do what the Jedi- what the Sith- failed to do."

 

"Such an army will take years to build, to train-"

 

"Then you had better get started. Retrieve any holocons you find, but your primary target will be the blood scanners. We need at least one to reverse engineer. Coruscant is one of the few worlds left from the New Republic that can put up a fight if we go in with the military- and I do not wish to risk destroying what we are looking for. Go to Coruscant. Go to Palpatine's palace- and return with what you find."

 

Sheeva glanced at the others. They all nodded their heads, and she turned back to Kyla. "It will be as you command, Kyla Ren. We will go to Coruscant. With your leadership, the Knights of Ren will rise to heights undreamed of!"

"

Save the flattery for later, Sheeva. You will all leave tonight. Ready yourselves for departure." She rose from the throne and left without waiting for them to salute.

 

"Kyla has a grand vision," Royce observed. "Master Snoke never spoke of such a thing."

 

"Snoke distrusted us," Nippet replied. "He sent us far away from each other. He did not wish us to work together. He knew that we were stronger when together."

 

"The Rule of Two-" Polax whispered in a harsh voice.

 

"Belonged to the Sith," Sheeva retorted. "Kyla Ren is correct; we are not and were never meant to be Sith any more than we were to be Jedi. We are more than either. We are the Knights of Ren."

 

"So you believe in Kyla's plan?" Royce asked her with a smirk.

 

"I can see many uses for a device that can detect Force Sensitives with a blood test," Sheeva told him. "I agree with Kyla Ren to that extent. An army … I see many risks in assembling such a great number of Force users."

 

"She is our leader," Polax whispered again. "We cannot defy her."

 

"That would not be wise," Sheeva admitted. "Kyla was not raised to be forgiving."

 

"So we're agreed then?" Royce asked. "We do what we are ordered."

 

"This time," Sheeva clarified, "we do."

 

Minas was physically mute. He had refused to use an artificial voice box. That did not mean he was voiceless to other Force users. _Kyla Ren is with child._

 

"What?!" Sheeva was dumbfounded. She had never known Snoke's daughter to favor anyone … man or woman.

 

_I sense the beginnings of another mind. She is with child. Did you not feel the increase in her power?_

 

"I thought she had just grown stronger with age," Sheeva murmured. "A child … but who could the father be?"

 

 _The child already shows promise of being strong in the Force._ Minas fingered his staff. _The father must be Force Sensitive as well._

 

"Solo," Sheeva murmured. "Remember when she told us that she would deal with Ben Solo?"

 

"She slept with her father's murderer?" Polax demanded.

 

"Possibly," Sheeva murmured. She was already certain that Ben Solo was the father of Kyla's child. It was the only thing that made sense. A child with Skywalker blood … a child who was heir to the First Order … yes, Sheeva sensed immense possibilities in such a child. "We say nothing to anyone."

 

The others looked at her curiously.

 

"Kyla's child is a matter for the Knights of Ren. We owe it our loyalty. Imagine the danger the child would be in if it was known that Kyla Ren was expecting. The Resistance- and Kyla's enemies in the First Order- will not want her to have an heir. We must make sure it survives. That child is the future of the First Order … and the Knights of Ren."

 

 _And when the time comes …_ Sheeva thought to herself with a smile. _It will be key to my future as well …_


	24. Uncle Lando

With the First Order ascendant in the Galaxy, there were few doors open to what was left of Leia Organa's Resistance. Fortunately, one of them belonged to a long term friend of Ben Solo's family. Or at least he hoped that Lando Calrissian was still a friend.

 

 _"You do remember that Lando betrayed your parents to the Empire, right?"_ Chewbacca asked in a growl as they made their way to Lando's office. _"Sold Han right to Darth Vader in exchange for Cloud City being given autonomy from the Empire."_

 

"And that deal backfired on him big time, remember? Uncle Lando doesn't make the same mistakes twice." He paused. "And you worked with him to help save Dad. Did something happen between the two of you while I was … away?"

 

 _"No,"_ Chewbacca growled softly. They were taking a circumspect route to Lando's office as Wookies were hardly a common sight in the Galaxy. _"But I just lost your parents … I don't want to lose you too. There's a risk in coming back to Cloud City."_

"We have to take some chances," Poe murmured as he walked on the other side of the Wookie. Like Ben, he was dressed as a spice trader. Ben had to admit that Poe carried it off well … he definitely had the air of scoundrel about him and he could easily imagine the pilot could have made a fine smuggler if life had been different. "The best we're able to do on our own is stay alive. If the Resistance is going to become a true Rebellion … if we're ever going to stop the First Order, we need allies."

 

 _"Just don't trust Lando with your credits,"_ Chewie replied.

 

"Right now credits are in short supply," Poe sighed. "If nothing else, maybe General Calrissian will float us a loan for weapons and equipment."

 

Even Ben rolled his eyes at that.

 

Still, Poe was right. Leia's death was not public ally known as of yet, but it was only a matter of time before that came out. Once that happened, almost no one would be willing to help the Resistance … even on the sly. They needed help … and lots of it.

 

 _At the very least, Lando can offer us advice,_ Ben told himself. _Granted, that might be_ _ **all**_ _he offers us._

 

His father and Lando had an unusual friendship to say the least. The story of their meeting was something he'd only learned in bits and pieces- from Chewie, mostly- but he knew that they had been known to do each other dirty on more than once occasion. Even so, there was real respect and friendship- a type of familial love, even- between the two men.

 

He didn't relish telling Lando how Han had died.

 

Lando Calrissian had a posh office space at the very top of Cloud City that served as his official place of residence, but like the scoundrel he was and always had been, he had a second office where he could meet in private with his less reputable customers. The coded message that Chewbacca had sent Lando asked him to meet them here.

 

"We should have brought Kay," Ben said to Poe as they waited. He glanced outside one of the windows. "Lando tends to be at his most agreeable when there's a pretty face along."

 

"I don't think that Kay would appreciate that," Poe said stiffly.

 

Chewbacca barked a laugh and exchanged a knowing look with his godson.

 

Poe obviously had what Luke would have called an "attachment" to Kaydel Connix.

 

Finally, Lando Calrissian swept into the room. "All right, Han, you old scoundrel, what do you want now …?"

 

Lando froze when he saw his actual guests. Of course he expected Chewbacca as the Wookie was always at Han's side. But the two young men … One was a total stranger, but the other …?

 

"Ben?" he whispered in disbelief. " _Ben Solo?"_

 

"Hi, Uncle Lando." Ben waved a hesitant hand. He hadn't been sure of his welcome. Lando had always seemed fond of him when Ben was a child; and even as a youth Lando had been one of the few people that never seemed to be overly afraid or annoyed with Ben … There was a reason it still felt right to call him "Uncle Lando" after all …

 

But for six years he had left his family think that he was dead … and for all the unconventional nature of it, Lando was as much a part of that family as Chewie and Luke …

 

"Ben!" Lando raced forward and wrapped him in a tight embrace. For all of his years, the older man was still surprisingly strong. "Ben! I _told_ Han that it would take more than some Jedi gone bad to kill a Solo! Where have you been, boy?! Where's your father? Did _he_ find you or did you have to drag his old behind out of a fire …?"

 

Ben felt his eyes grow hot with unshed tears. "He's gone, Uncle Lando. He's gone. Mom's gone. Luke is gone. I lost them all. I came home only to lose them all ..."

 

He hadn't meant to act like this … he had not meant to cry … how the kriff was he going to convince Lando to help the Resistance if he acted like a blubbering child in front of him …?

 

Lando's face froze when he heard Ben's speech. Then he touched the younger man's face and led him over to a chair. "Sit down, Ben." He nodded a welcome over to Chewbacca. "You too, Chewie. And you as well, young man." He walked over to the minibar and pulled out a dusty bottle. "I think we can all use a drink. And after that … after that, you can tell me what's happened and why you came to your old Uncle Lando ..."

 

Lando gave him a New Alderaan wine. It was light, and the alcohol content in it wasn't strong at all. That was a good thing. At the Jedi Academy there hadn't been any to speak of, and once he was out on his own he didn't dare drink for fear of loosing his Force connection accidentally … or telling anyone around him that he was really Ben Solo.

 

Lando himself and Poe drank a strong Corellian whiskey. The smell brought back memories of Han drinking it and singing (terribly) on those rare occasions when Ben was allowed to go on a Han Solo "special trip." Those trips had ended by the time that Ben was ten years old, but he had never forgotten them.

 

Han had taught him to fly on those trips.

 

And that legacy had kept him alive for those six long years he had tried to be anyone but Ben Solo.

 

Poe had not heard the story of his father's death either, but he had been present when Luke sacrificed himself for the Resistance. When Ben finished speaking about Han, Poe took over and told Lando of Luke's valiant sacrifice. Finally, between the two of them, they told him how Leia had passed away.

 

"She should have come to me," Lando whispered. "I would have helped her."

 

"She knew," Ben told him gently. "She just didn't want to drag you into this."

 

"But you don't have that problem." Lando smiled at him.

 

"We wouldn't be here if we had any other choice, General Calrissian," Poe told him earnestly. "But we're just barely hanging on. We need food. Supplies. Ships and people to crew them. We're desperately trying to keep freedom alive in the Galaxy-"

 

"Leia called for help."

 

"You got the signal?" Ben asked him, surprised.

 

"No. I would have come for her- for you- if I had gotten it. But I heard about it later. They say that the only one who came to help was Luke Skywalker. They say he held back the First Order single-handedly and gave you all time to escape."

 

"He Force projected himself halfway across the Galaxy to save us," Poe said softly. "The Last Jedi gave his life for the Resistance … if he _was_ the Last Jedi." He looked at Ben.

 

"I'm not a Jedi, Poe. I wasn't fully trained when the Academy was destroyed, and I hadn't held a light saber for six years until recently ..."

 

"You did well enough. You're the reason Kyla Ren has a metal hand now, isn't she?"

 

Ben gave Chewbacca a hard stare. "You told him?"

 

The Wookie shrugged. _"They needed hope, Ben."_

 

 _What if I had taken Kyla with me?_ Ben asked himself for the hundredth time. _Mom wouldn't have let them kill her … not if I had insisted. And maybe … maybe I could have shown her a better way. I could have taken her to Luke and he could have helped her …_

 

It was a fantasy, he knew. Kyla was too dangerous- even without her light saber, she could have killed dozens in an escape attempt. She was simply too powerful to be held captive without some sort of Force suppression technology ….

 

And that was something the Resistance did not have.

 

He couldn't have brought Kyla with him … and he could not have abandoned Finn after the younger man had risked his life to save Ben. The ex-Stormtrooper had needed medical care … and the Resistance was the only place he could go for that. So he had left Kyla behind ….

 

Just like her parents.

 

"If you had just managed to kill her then ..." Poe began.

 

"I couldn't kill her."

 

"'You beat her fair and square. That's what Chewie said."

 

The Wookie barked an affirmation.

 

"I got lucky. She wasn't trying to kill me. She wanted to convert me."

 

"But-"

 

"I couldn't kill her, Poe."

 

"Jedi don't murder, Poe," Lando said quietly, watching Ben's face intently. "You have no idea what you're asking of Ben. You'll have to find another way." He sighed. "There are millions of people here on Cloud City, but we don't have an army or a fleet of battlecruisers. I can provide you some information, but that's about it. If the First Order gets wind that I'm helping you, it'll be the Empire all over again. It took decades to repair _that_ damage. I have a responsibility to my people."

 

"And the rest of the galaxy be hanged?" Poe demanded.

 

"Poe-" Ben warned him. "That's enough. Lando will help us as much as he can't. Don't ask more from him than he can give. That's not fair."

 

"The Resistance is fighting for him- for Cloud City and everyone else! But they all want to just wait on the sidelines while we try to win a war with an ancient ship and a couple dozen people! Don't talk to me about fair, Solo!" Poe stood up angrily.

 

His own temper rising, Ben rose to his feet. The two young men glared at each other, hands curled into fists.

 

"That's enough, gentlemen." Lando's voice didn't raise, but it had the unmistakable air of command. "You can beat each other to hell on your own time- but not in _my_ city."

 

"Sorry, General Calrissian," Poe apologized. "And, Ben-"

 

"Forget it."

 

"Chewbacca, take this." Lando handed him an office pad. "And take young Dameron with you. That's authorization for as much food and medicine as your ship can carry. I'll talk to Ben while you two are seeing that."

 

 _"Don't hurt him,"_ Chewbacca warned the old man.

 

"I love him like my own flesh and blood, Chewie. I'll never hurt Ben. You have my word on it."

 

Chewbacca looked at him a moment longer, and then turned and motioned for Poe to follow him.

 

"We'll be back soon," the Resistance General told Ben. He lowered his voice. "See what you can do to get him to help us."

 

Ben nodded.

 

No sooner had Chewie and Poe left then Lando went back to his bottle of whiskey and poured another glass. This one he handed to Ben. "Drink it."

 

"I shouldn't—"

 

"One drink won't impair you, Ben, but it may help you relax enough to tell me what's _really_ going on. Why didn't you kill Kyla Ren? Do you know the things that she's done?"

 

"She's done terrible things," Ben admitted.

 

"And you passed on a chance to kill her."

 

"As you said, a Jedi wouldn't have killed her."

 

"A Jedi would have brought her to face justice." Lando cocked a smile. "And a Solo would typically not leave a dangerous enemy behind if he didn't have to."

 

Ben said nothing and took a drink.

 

Realization dawned in Lando's eyes. "Ah, kriff, Ben. _Her?_ "

 

"Her," Ben admitted. He eyed the bottle.

 

"No. Your mother would reach out through the Force and have my head if I got you drunk now." Lando shook his head. "You're a Solo all right. Did you know her before Starkiller?"

 

"It's a complicated story, Uncle Lando."

 

"It won't get any less so by not talking to me. Tell me, Ben. We _are_ family. I promise you that I'm not going to judge you."

 

"Before Snoke found her on Jakku, she was a girl named Rey. She lived by herself as a scavenger. She was abandoned by her parents when she was little more than a baby." Ben scowled. "She worked for a real piece of work named Unkar Plutt. Snoke found her, and took her in. He claimed her as his daughter and heir, and trained her in the ways of the Force."

 

"And that's when you met her?"

 

"No. I spent months on Jakku, but not by choice … and this was long after Snoke had taken her away. I met Rey- or Kyla Ren as she's called now- on Takodana. I had seen the map to Uncle Luke that Poe's droid BB8 was carrying, and she tried to access my memories to obtain it." Ben closed his eyes. "That's when she found out who I was. Fortunately, she was called away and I was able to use my own Force sensitivity to escape. I met up with Chewie, Dad, and Finn- a Stormtrooper defector. Dad … well, you know he died on Starkiller. He gave his life to keep me free from Snoke. Chewie blew up the oscillator that controlled the Starkiller device … Kyla and I escaped together … and ..."

 

"Something happened."

 

"She's carrying my child, Uncle Lando."

 

Lando's glass slipped from his hands and crashed to the floor. "That's something all right. Kriff, Ben. How did you let that happen-?"

 

"I didn't have a choice."

 

"You didn't have a choice ..." Lando's eyes narrowed dangerously. "She forced you, didn't she?"

 

Ben looked away. "The first time … yes."

 

"The first time … _Kriff,_ Ben."

 

"I know."

 

"All right. All right." Lando closed his eyes. "So the woman is carrying your baby … and the odds are the child will be strong in the Force."

 

"Yes. I can't let it grow up to be another Darth Vader, Uncle Lando. I have to stop Kyla. I have to stop the First Order."

 

"Ben …" Lando laid a hand on his shoulder. "You are _definitely_ your father's son. I'll do what I can to help you. I wasn't kidding when I said I had some information."

 

"What sort of information?"

 

"Some of Kyla's Knights stopped here for refueling and maintenance."

 

"Are they still here?" Ben reached through the Force but felt no trace of them.

 

"No. They're gone," Lando confirmed. "They were heading to Coruscant." He paused. "One of my technicians 'happened'"- he made air quotes- "to overhear they were heading to Palpatine's palace, the old Jedi Temple. They were looking for something. That was all she could make out."

 

"Force only knows what sort of things that the Emperor left behind," Ben muttered to himself. "I have to get to Coruscant."

 

"It won't be easy. The _Falcon's_ too damn famous. Coruscant is officially trying to stay neutral- not recognizing the First Order as the dominant power in the Galaxy but trying to avoid an attack. You'll need help."

 

"Can you help me?"

 

"Not myself, no, but I know someone who might."

 

"Who?" Ben asked.

 

"They're part of Crimson Dawn."

 

"Criminals. And not the scoundrel type like Dad and you." Ben rolled his eyes, but he didn't outright reject the plan as he knew that Poe might. He _was_ a Solo, after all. "Why would they help us?"

 

"One of their leaders is an old … friend of your father's. She might help you for Han's sake."

 

"How old a friend?" Ben's eyes narrowed.

 

"It was a long time ago, Ben. Han hadn't even met Leia then- kriff, Leia would have been just a kid back then."

 

"All right." He still felt an unreasonable surge of anger at the thought of there being another woman in his father's life before his mother, but he forced it down. "What's this woman's name?"

 

"Qi'ra," Lando told him. "Her name is Qi'ra."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> From here on out, updates will be slower. November is Nanowrimo and as that's the only time of year I write ORIGINAL fiction these days I always participate in that. 
> 
> Don't worry, though. Kyla isn't finished with Ben yet. ;-)


	25. Leia's Revenge

 

 

_“Come back ...”_

 

A child's voice. Her voice calling for her parents as they sold her to Unkar Plutt. Ben's voice, calling for his parents after they left him with his uncle Luke Skywalker.

 

A child... a crying child in the arms of Ben Solo … a little girl in miniature Jedi robes … being held tenderly … being carried away … being taken away from her mother …

 

Away from Kyla.

 

“No!” Kyla woke up, snatching her light saber up from its place at her bedside. “NooOOOooo!”

 

“You'll need to get a handle on that if you're ever going to share a bed with Ben. You could wind up a widow by mistake.”

 

Leia Organa.

 

Shimmering with blue light, a Force Ghost. Kyla had heard of such things from Father, but she had never thought she would see one herself. She was amazed; she had no idea that Leia Organa had the knowledge to surpass death.

 

“Ben and I aren't married.” She's wearing black sleeping pants and top … it's comfortable and allows her the freedom of movement to protect herself. “We will never be married.”

 

“The future is always in motion.” Leia looked younger than she had when she died. A woman only slightly older than Kyla herself. “Rey ...”

 

“My name is Kyla Ren.”

 

“It is now. You were a girl named Rey once. It's amazing the things that you learn when you're dead.” Luke's lips twitched. “You know, you could have just as easily been on the side of the Resistance as the First Order … and Ben could be where you are now.”

 

“The Resistance favors anarchy and chaos. I would never with such fools. The galaxy needs a new order. I was born to bring that order.” She sneered at him. “And Ben had his chance to rule at my side. There are things that matter to him-- power isn't one of them.” _And neither am I or our child._

 

_“_ You wrong him. You and that child are the most important things in the Galaxy to him.”

 

“If that were the case, he would be here now.”

 

Leia's lips twitched. “Or you could have gone with him.”

 

Kyla blinked. “And leave the Galaxy in Hux's hands? He doesn't have the temperament to do what has to be done.”

 

Leia smirked. Kyla found that rather aggravating. “I recall similar conversations I had with my husband. He didn't want to be tied down to one world. He helped the Rebellion, helped defeat the Empire, and once that was done he was ready to get back to his old life. He didn't understand why I was so certain that my place was in the New Republic Senate. Neither of us knew how to find a compromise we both could live with-- so Han was gone more than he was there, and I juggled my life as a Senator with being Ben's full time mother.” She sighed. “Not so successfully as it turned out.”

 

“You sent him to Luke Skywalker.”

 

“I did. And that was the second biggest mistake of my life.”

 

“What was the first?”

 

“Not telling Han what our son was going through.” Leia looked away. “I thought he wouldn't understand. He was never comfortable with the Force … with Ben's connection to it. He was at his happiest when he could pretend that Ben just a normal kid. I thought if he knew that he would do something rash ...”

 

“He would have gone after Father.” Kyla doesn't understand how she knew this, but she was certain of it. Han Solo was a man who had committed suicide rather than allow himself to be used as a hostage for his son's behavior.

 

“Yes. He and Chewie and who knows who else would have gone after Snoke hellbent for leather, and we would have had our war with the First Order years earlier than we actually did.” Leia looks down at her now-youthful hands. “And who knows? Perhaps things would have turned out for the better.”

 

Kyla growled. “That is doubtful.” She went over to her kitchenette and poured herself a cup of caf.

 

“Because Snoke-- excuse me, your 'father's' little First Order would not have been strong enough to survive such early intervention?”

 

“The First Order is strong. Father made it so.”

 

Leia laughed. “You're defending the man you murdered.”

 

Kyla whipped her head around to glare at the Force Ghost. If Leia Organa had been alive she would not have lived to take another breath. “Ben Solo killed Supreme Leader Snoke.”

 

“I know the true story.” Leia waved a hand. “Don't worry. I'm dead, so it's not like I can tell anyone else.” She paused. “And I wouldn't even if I could.”

 

Kyla frowned.

 

“Oh don't get me wrong. You _raped_ my son. My husband is dead because you tried to use him to enslave my son. Directly and indirectly, you are responsible for the deaths of dozens-- _hundreds_ of people who shared my cause. You stood by as Hux and your father ordered the destruction of the Hosnia System. Billions of people died and you did _nothing._ I haven't forgotten that, Kyla Ren. I haven't forgiven you. I could have watched you die without shedding a tear. But I can't now.”

 

“Because Ben loves me?” She wanted to hear that again. Even if Ben wouldn't say it to her directly, she wanted it affirmed by someone other than herself.

 

“Because you are carrying my grandchild.”

 

“My daughter.” Kyla touched her stomach. “Ben told me had a vision of our daughter.”

 

“As you just did.” Leia smiled … but it was not a particularly pleasant smile.

 

“Yes ...”

 

“You think you're going to leave her an Empire to inherit.”

 

“She will be safe. No power in the Galaxy will be able to hurt her. I'll see to that-- no matter what it takes.”

 

Leia smiled. “That won't happen.”

 

“Is this where you tell me how your precious Resistance will stop me?” Kyla resisted the urge to sneer.

 

“Oh no. That is by no means certain. Your daughter though …her _fate_ ...”

 

“What have you seen?!” Kyla stared at the old-young woman. “Tell me!”

 

“She will not follow your path, Kyla Ren. Your daughter will be a Jedi. Build your Empire if you can-- but she will tear it down. In the end, as you did with Snoke, you will have to choose-- between power and love.”

 

“You're a liar. My daughter will not become a Jedi. I won't let that happen. _Ben_ wouldn't let that happen. You said it yourself, the future is always in motion. You're lying.”

 

“I can't kill you, Kyla Ren. I can't hurt you physically. But I can tell you what I have seen-- what Luke Skywalker has seen-- your daughter will be a Jedi. Whatever legacy you hope to give her, she will choose another. She will leave you-- like your parents, like Ben-- she will leave you behind ….”

 

“No!”

 

Kyla bolted upright in her bed.

 

“It was a dream,” she murmured to herself. “Just a dream. That's all ...”

 

But as she laid her head down, as she tried to go back to sleep, she could still hear Leia's voice whispering in the back of her mind. “She will leave you-- like your parents, like Ben-- she will leave you behind ...”

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: And back from Nanowrimo. I do believe that it's canon enough that Leia has a real problem forgiving those who wronged her. So, yeah. I think even as a Force Ghost this is something that Leia might very well do.


	26. Qi'ra

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Lando made the connection for them. He wouldn't be there-- he _couldn't_ be there-- but he was the one who made the arrangements. “Be careful with her, Ben. She can be quite charming-- but you don't stay in power in the Crimson Dawn gang for nearly 40 years without being ruthless.”

 

“I'll be careful, Uncle Lando. Thank you.”

 

“ _I'm going with you. I knew her a long time ago.”_ Chewbacca growled. “ _And Han would never forgive me if I let you face her alone.”_

 

“I should go with you,” Poe Dameron repeated. He'd made the offer more than once, and each time Ben replied the same as he did now.

 

“No way. You're leading the Rebellion, Poe. They can't afford to lose you.”

 

“We can't afford to lose you either.” Poe smiled, and again Ben felt the force of the other man's charisma. No wonder his mother had wanted Poe to lead. “ _I_ can't afford to lose another friend.”

 

“I'll be fine. I've got Chewie and Finn with me.”

 

“And me!” Rose added. The young technician had profited from a visit to the Cloud City medical center. She had just been cleared for duty, however; Ben wouldn't have considered bringing her along if she hadn't. “You might need my help to bypass the security systems or identify whatever it is the Ren Knights are looking for there.”

 

“You're taking my best people with you, Ben,” Poe chided him gently. “Are you  _sure_ this trip is necessary?”

 

“Yes. Whatever Kyla is looking for it won't be good for the Rebellion. We have to stop them from getting what she wants.” He touched his light saber. “And if we should happen to  _deal_ with one or more of the Knights ...”

 

“Are you sure it's not vengeance you're looking for, Ben?” Poe fixed him with a stern gaze. “I know what the Knights of Ren did to your uncle's Jedi Academy.”

 

“Ben's not like that!” Finn said angrily. Poe had been his first friend, but he had come to look at Ben as sort of a big brother figure. “He wouldn't do anything to hurt the Rebellion.”

 

Ben sighed. “Poe's got a reason to be concerned, Finn.” One of his eyes turned golden again. “I won't lie. I would be happy to kill almost all the Knights of Ren, but that's not what I'm looking to do here. Whatever Kyla is looking for on Coruscant, we'd be a lot better off if she doesn't find it.”

 

_If she can't find a way to locate Force Sensitive children maybe she'll give up this idea and we'll be able to work out some kind of compromise …_

 

He closed his eyes, and when he opened them again both of them were normal. “I promise, Poe; I'm not going to do anything to put any of us-- or the mission-- at risk. We get in. We find what the Knights are looking for; try to get it ourselves or destroy it if we can't, and get out of there. You have my word on it.”

 

Poe gave him a long measuring look. Ben hadn't told the new Rebellion General of his connection to Kyla, but it was only a matter of time before he put two and two together. If he had more time, Ben would have done it already; unfortunately time was a commodity he didn't have enough of right now.

“Then Godspeed, Rebels. Come home successful.” He looked each of them in the eyes. “Come home alive.”

 

“We'll do our best.”

 

“In the meantime, I'll keep the  _Falcon_ safe.”

 

“ _Tell him if he damages her I will not rip off one of his arms,”_ Chewbacca growled.

 

“You won't?” Ben asked him in surprise.

 

“ _I'll rip off both of them.”_

 

“Okay ...” Ben nodded slowly. “Poe, be very careful with that ship.”

 

“I get the gist of it.” Poe nodded respectfully at the Wookie.

 

Chewbacca growled menacingly … and then reached over and tousled Poe's hair.

 

..**..

 

The ship that Lando had provided them to meet Qi'ra was nothing special, but it couldn't be traced to either the Rebellion or Cloud City. Land had offered them the use of his personal ship, but Ben had turned him down. He had some fond memories of  _The Lady Luck_ that went back to his childhood and he didn't want to risk Lando's pride and joy on a mission that might prove hazardous.

 

Finn and Chewie were grabbing some much needed sleep while Ben was piloting their loaner ship with Rose Tico acting as his copilot. The young woman had the makings of a fine pilot.

 

“I can't believe I'm here with the son of General Organa,” Rose said once the others had gone to sleep. The woman's natural bubbly personality (or so Kay had described her to Ben) had been tempered by her recent injury, but it wasn't extinguished. “Han Solo's son … Luke Skywalker's nephew ...”

 

“I'm aware of my parentage, Rose,” Ben told her gently.

 

The young woman blushed. “I'm sorry. It's just … everything that I heard growing up ...”

 

“I understand. They're legends.”  _And they're all gone. I'm all alone …_

 

_“You're not alone, Ben,”_ Kyla had promised him …

 

“And you're a Jedi ...”

 

“I'm not a Jedi. I trained to be one, but that was cut short with the destruction of the Jedi Academy.”

 

“You're still the closest thing we have to a Jedi ...”

 

“I know.” He wasn't comfortable with that … he had occasion to glance through the Sacred Jedi Texts; Luke had preached a more tolerant version of the Jedi Code than the one he read there, but he was still not sure that he could have ever followed Luke's version. The Dark had been a part of him all his life; casting that out would have been like cutting his own arm. “But I'd rather you just think of me as your friend Ben Solo. Being called a Jedi … I'm not sure that I can live up to that.”

 

“I understand.” Rose was silent for a moment. “So … you met Kyla Ren.”

 

Ben glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. “Yes. I did.”

 

“Finn hates her and fears her. He says that she's a monster. That she ordered the slaughter of innocent villagers on Jakku...”

 

“She has done terrible things,” Ben admitted.  _And not just to me._

 

“The way you say her name ...”

 

Ben glanced at her.

 

“There's … tenderness there.” Rose shrugged. “Maybe it's just in my head.”

 

Ben frowned. He could have brushed her remarks off, but he found that he didn't want to do that. She deserved better. “You're not wrong … but it's complicated.”

 

Rose snorted. “Given what I've heard about her, I'm not surprised.” She glanced back towards the crew quarters where Finn and Chewie slept. “But I think I understand.”

 

Ben smiled. “He's very fond of you.”

 

“I know.” Rose closed her eyes for a moment. “But I don't know if that's because I saved his life or not.”

 

“He's a good man. He has a good heart. He would never do anything to hurt you.” Ben reached over and clasped her hand. “Have faith in him.”

 

“I do.”

 

Ben smiled at her. “And he'd be lucky to have you. You're an amazing young woman.”

 

“That was Paige. My sister. You should have met her. She was …” A tear fell from her eye.

 

“I'm sure she was exceptional.” Ben smiled. “That doesn't mean you aren't either.”

 

Rose smiled at her. “And so are you, Ben.” She squeezed his hand. “Not because you're Leia and Han's son. Not because you're Luke Skywalker's nephew. Because you're a good man. Because you're Ben Solo.”

 

Ben smiled because he could feel his throat tightening. For most of his life, he had been defined by his family; having someone state that he  _personally_ had worth was still a new experience. “I can see why Finn likes you so,” he finally said. 

 

Rose smiled. “Thanks.” She was silent for a moment. “About Kyla Ren...”

 

“Yes?”

 

“I hope that ...” she floundered for moment.

 

“I know,” Ben told her gently. “You don't have to say anything, but thank you for your thoughts.”

 

Kyla Ren was the Supreme Leader of the First Order. Ben Solo was part of the Rebellion that was sworn to stop her. Whatever ending they were likely to get, it was unlikely to be a happy one.

 

..**..

 

Qi'ra met them on an old luxury liner.

 

The ship was impressive, and Rose whispered respectfully to them of the concealed weapons ports that she spotted. “That ship is a lot tougher than it looks. They could blow us out of space without any trouble at all.”

 

“That's reassuring,” Finn muttered.

 

“Don't worry,” Rose said confidently. “The Force is with us-- right, Ben?”

 

Chewbacca snorted.  _“Han always preferred a blaster.”_

 

Ben smiled tightly at all of them. “Remember, she agreed to this meeting. We're not surprising her out of the blue. Be respectful-- but be ready to run if we have to.”

 

“You're acting like you don't trust her,” Finn pointed out.

 

“She works with Crimson Dawn. She betrayed Dad.  _Of course_ I don't trust her. I imagine she's going to want something for her help. I just hope that it's something we can afford.”

 

_“I will keep an eye on her,”_ Chewbacca promised. 

 

“And  _I'll_ keep an eye on you,” Finn said with a degree of cheek that Ben wouldn't have expected of him when they had first met. The ex-Stormtrooper had changed greatly since joining the Rebellion against the First Order. 

 

Chewbacca laughed at that and rubbed Finn's head. He lowered his voice to a soft whine and whispered to the only person here who understand him. “ _Be careful, Ben. She is not to be trusted.”_

 

“I understand.” Ben nodded his head. He looked at the others who were clearly waiting for him to make the first move.  _The joys of being technically in charge,_ he thought with a sigh. “Follow me and let me do the talking.”  _Could really use a bit of that Solo swagger if you're listening, Dad …_

 

Qi'ra herself was not the one to meet them as they left the airlock. There was a tall robed creature who looked like it would have been more at home in a desert than aboard a space ship set to human levels of comfort. It's facial features were totally hidden by cloth, a grill that covered its mouth, and goggles hid its eyes. It spoke in a deep voice, in Huttese. “You are Ben Solo?”

 

Ben blinked.  _A Tusken Raider? But they almost never leave Tatooine._ He knew Huttese himself from the years he'd spent as a trader, but he spoke in Basic so his companions would understand him. “I am.”

 

“The son of Leia Organa and Han Solo?”

 

“I am.”

 

The Tusken tightened his (for Ben had decided it was a male) grip on his gaffi stick. “The grandson of Anakin Skywalker?”

 

Ben tensed.  _Anakin told me once he had slaughtered a whole Tusken Village in revenge of his mother's death._ “I am.”

 

Chewbacca growled warningly and stepped forward, placing himself between Ben and the Tusken. The Wookie was one of the few creatures tall enough to look  _down_ on a Tusken.

 

If the Tusken blinked, he didn't show it. He simply turned his back on them. “Come with me.”

 

Ben nodded to the others and they followed the Tusken through the ship. There were men and women of all species here. Many were dressed in elaborate finery; others in the standard garments the crew of such a ship would wear. Ben had no doubt that each one of them knew exactly what Qi'ra wanted them to know and no more.

 

_“I have a bad feeling about this,”_ Chewbacca growled.

 

“I know.”

 

They followed the Tusken to the entertainment deck. They entered a large ballroom where a woman sat alone in a chair watching an elaborate Twi'lek dance. She clapped her hands. “That was an excellent performance, ladies. I think it will be suitable for tonight. Now if you'll excuse me, I have business to attend to.”

 

The dancers bowed gracefully and walked off the stage.

 

“Mistress, I have brought them.” The Tusken did something that surprised the kriff out of Ben. He  _bowed_ to the woman.

 

“Thank you, A'Kava. You may go now.”

 

“Mistress.” The Tusken turned back to Ben, his hands clutching his gaffi stick.

 

“I said, you may go.”

 

The Tusken bowed again and then walked out of the room, muttering something to himself in Tusken. Ben didn't speak that particular language, but he had no doubt it wasn't complimentary.

 

“A'Kava is a treasure, I don't know what I'd do without him. But Tuskens require a firm hand.” The woman rose to her feet and held out her hand. “My name is Qi'ra. How do you do?”

 

Ben stared at her. He wasn't sure what he had been expecting— wasn't sure he had  _wanted_ to expect anything, but Qi'ra was nothing at all what he had expected.

 

She had to be older than his mother … maybe by as much as a decade ...but she looked much younger. Her hair was still dark, her face smooth, her eyes clear and sharp. She barely looked older than Ben himself.

 

Chewbacca rumbled a greeting.  _“You look well, Qi'ra._ ”

 

“Thank you, Chewbacca.” The ghost of a smile crossed her face. “I do try to stay in shape. You're looking good yourself.” She glanced back at Ben. “Are you going to shake my hand or are you too good for that, your highness?”

 

Ben blinked and shook her hand firmly. “I'm sorry. You're just not what I was expecting. And don't bother with the royal titles. My mother gave up the throne of New Alderaan for both of us long ago.”

 

“I see.” She looked him up and down. “You're not exactly what I was expecting either.”

 

Ben blinked.

 

“The son of Han Solo.” She walked around him. “You've got his height. I'll say that for you.”

 

Ben nodded. He had never possessed his father's charm or charisma. That was one of the reasons he tended to sign on as a pilot for other smugglers during his short career in the field himself. “Thank you.”

 

“So Han managed to marry a princess … albeit one that gave up her throne.” She smiled, but it did not touch her eyes. “We were very young and in love once, Han and I.”

 

“I didn't know that.” Ben shifted uncomfortably. “Dad didn't speak much about his childhood.”

 

“I'm not surprised. It was kriffing awful for both of us.” She shrugged and sat down. “We both found our way off Corellia, so in the end I suppose it worked out the way that it should have for both of us.”

 

Ben sighed. “At another time I would be happy to indulge your curiosity, Madame Qi'ra, but just now I find my time to be limited.”

 

Qi'ra nodded. “Lando said that you needed a favor.” She held up a hand. “I do hope you're not planning on asking for personnel and equipment. Crimson Dawn is not a charity. I see no reason to deliberately get into conflict with the First Order. Supreme Leader Snoke was always willing to be  _reasonable_ with us.”

 

“I wouldn't expect the same treatment from Rey.”  _Kriff._ “I mean Supreme Leader Kyla Ren.”

 

“Rey?” Qi'ra's eyes widened in surprise. “Interesting.”

 

“We're not asking for you to join the Rebellion-- at this time anyway.” Ben spoke faster than he should, knowing that would only make Qi'ra pay more attention to his slip. “Right now we need transport on and off Coruscant.”

 

“And why is that?”

 

Ben weighed his options. Telling the truth wasn't necessarily the best idea, but he couldn't think of any deception that would gain her cooperation. “Kyla Ren needs something from the old Jedi Temple. I need to stop her from getting it.”

 

“And what is this thing she seeks?”

 

“I don't know exactly,” Ben admitted. Again he pondered. “I know what she wants though. She wants to bring order to the galaxy.”

 

“Everyone claims to want that-- and they all fail. The Jedi. The Emperor. This means nothing.”

 

“She intends to recruit an army of Force Users to help her.”

 

Qi'ra inhaled sharply. “Force Users?”

 

“Yes.” Ben reached out with the Force instinctively. Qi'ra did not have it herself; why then did she react so fiercely? “Whether they want to join her or not.”

 

Qi'ra frowned. “And what will happen to them if they refuse to join her?”

 

Ben sighed. “It won't be pleasant. That's why she has to be stopped.”

 

Qi'ra bit her lip. “Transportation to Coruscant.”

 

“And off it,” Ben reminded her.

 

“All right. I'll do that much. I'll have A'Kava arrange for transportation for you--”

 

“For the two of us ...” Finn began.

 

“He means the three of us ...” Rose added with a defiant glare at the ex-Stormtrooper.

 

Chewbacca growled and held up four fingers.

 

“A'Kava will arrange for transportation for the four of you on one of our … merchant ships,” Qi'ra said with a sigh. “The ship will remain on planet for four standard hours. Be back in that time and they will take you off planet.”

 

“We could use more time--” Ben began.

 

“Take it or leave it.”

 

Ben eyed her carefully. “We'll take it. And thank you.”

 

“Your welcome. Now if you would like to return to your ship to gather anything you need for your journey I will speak with A'Kava.”

 

It was clearly a dismissal.

 

“Thank you again, Madame Qi'ra.” Ben gestured to his friends and they left.

 

Qi'ra watched them go with a smile. _Oh, Han. He is your son through and through. So trusting. So foolish. A'Kava may very seek vengeance on the last of the Skywalkers … if he succeeds, then I will claim that I handed the Rebels' Jedi over to the First Order. If your son survives this treachery, he will prove himself strong enough to protect the one living person I care for now. Either way, I win._

 

She poured herself a drink and raised it in a silent toast. “To you, Han. And your son. May he be half as lucky as you were.”

 

And she drank.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


	27. Coruscant

 

 

Sheeva Ren knew that she had always been destined for power.

 

She had been born and grew up on Naboo. Her father was a minor political functionary. The high point of her mother's life had been the time she served as a handmaiden to Queen Apailana. They had been all too happy to send their daughter off with Luke Skywalker when the Jedi Master had informed them that Sheeva was strong with the Force.

 

And one of the first things she had done as a Knight of Ren was to return home and murder them both.

 

They had never loved her. They had never wanted her. They had been afraid of her.

 

They had cause.

 

Sheeva was born with her bone white skin … her golden eyes had come to her when she had surrendered to the Darkside. Her grandmother had died before her birth, but Sheeva was convinced that she had been a Darthomir native. _Something_ had to explain why her skin was of a different hue than her parents'. In the beginning, when she had struggled against the anger that she knew was forbidden by the Jedi Code, she had feared that she was the grandchild of Sheev Palpatine … the dreaded Emperor himself.

 

Later … when Snoke had visited her in dreams … when he had convinced her that ambition and anger were  _power_ … she had begun to hope that was so.

 

And when the time came,  _Sheeva_ was the name she chose for herself.

 

She had been drawn to Ben Solo at first … convinced that the Darkness she sensed in him was a twin to her own. The grandson of Darth Vader … the granddaughter of Sheev Palpatine. They could help each other … 

 

_Or they could rule together._

 

But Solo had seemed totally unaware of her infatuation with him … blind to what she was offering him. At the time, she had been sorely disappointed … perhaps even heartbroken. Later, she had been grateful … especially when Solo rejected Snoke and fled from the First Order.

 

Her path did not lie with Ben Solo. She was meant to  _rule_ on her own.

 

And for two years, she had done so.

 

She had been first among equals … Master of the Knights of Ren. She had sensed Kyla's power when Snoke introduced her, but she had not been concerned. Kyla was just a  _child_ … no threat to Sheeva herself. And her power could be of use …

 

But then … less than a month after Kyla had taken her light saber and mask, the so-called Daughter of Snoke had  _challenged_ Sheeva's mastery.

 

It had not been a situation Sheeva had wanted.

 

Killing Kyla was not an option. She was Snoke's favorite. Bringing down the wrath of her Master was not a viable long term strategy.

 

No, she would not kill Kyla, she had told herself. She would disarm her … perhaps even wound her … but she would not kill her …

 

And she hadn't.

 

She had  _lost._

 

She had lost to a child who had barely had two years of training. A girl who had appeared from nowhere, a girl who came from nothing … a  _child_ had bested her!

 

Forced to choose between subservience or death, Sheeva had opted for the former.

 

But she had not forgotten what Kyla had taken from her.

 

..**..

 

Coruscant had once been the jewel of the Empire. The capital of Palpatine's Empire. Before that, it had been home to the Old Republic. It had a glorious history …

 

And now … now that the New Republic had fallen, it struggled to survive. Officially neutral, the powers that be on the world welcome the Knights as “Ambassadors.” Coruscant had enough of a fleet to put up a fight if attacked even by the First Order. Coruscant would not win such a fight, but Kyla had no desire to waste valuable time and resources on a world so far removed from her seat of power.

 

Coruscant was now effectively controlled by Planetary Governor Madmund. “We are of course always prepared to speak with a representative of the First Order,” he had mumbled when they disembarked, “but we cannot break with our neutrality.”

 

Sheeva resisted the urge to drive her light saber through the man's throat right then and there. “The Supreme Leader is not seeking an alliance at this time,” she said smoothly. “We are simply hoping to visit Emperor Palpatine's palace.”

 

“You mean the Old Jedi Temple?” Madmund asked her in confusion.

 

Royce smoothly stepped in before Sheeva could retort. “As you are no doubt aware, Governor, the Jedi Temple was converted into the Emperor's Palace after the Clone Wars. It is a place of great history and importance … with a powerful presence in the Force. As the Knights of Ren, we are drawn to such places.” He paused. “And we have reason to think the Resistance may have designs on using it as a base of operations on Coruscant.”

 

The Governor's eyes narrowed. “We do not support the Resistance here.” 

 

_The Governor was a political enemy of General Organa,_ Minas informed them silently.  _He would not welcome the Resistance's presence._

 

“The Resistance is very good at hiding, Your Excellency,” Sheeva informed the Governor. And as they have Darth Vader's grandson with them, they may knowledge of the Palace's construction that you lack.”

 

“Darth Vader's grandson? I thought Ben Solo was dead ...” There was something not unlike fear in the Governor's eyes. He had no reason to think that Leia Organa's son would be kindly disposed towards him.

 

“He lives and has joined forces with his mother's Resistance. There are those who call him the Last Jedi … but of course his grandfather was once known as a Jedi hero too.” This was Royce again. Sheeva could feel the other Knight's subtle tweaking of Madmund's inherent paranoia through the Force. He was a master of such things.

 

“Before the New Republic fell, the … Palace … was undergoing renovation. It was meant to be a museum honoring the history of the Jedi and the Old Republic. The project has been shut down since Hosnia ...” The Governor's voice trailed off as he realized who he was speaking. “Since Hosnia.” He pulled out a badge and handed it to Sheeva. “This will give you official permission to search the grounds. None of my guards will hamper you. If you find Solo ...”

 

“We will try to capture him alive so that he might face the justice of Coruscant for intruding on your world,” Royce added smoothly. “But given his power, we might not be able to take him alive.”

 

“Of course … of course.” The Governor nodded. “I will totally understand if some sort of  _accident_ should befall Ben Solo ...”

 

“We should go,” Sheeva interrupted finally. “It wouldn't do for Ben Solo to slip out of our hands. Who knows what sort of mischief he could work among your people then? Or what scores he might seek to settle …?”

 

The Governor swallowed hard and then nodded abruptly. “Of course. I will leave you to your work. My guards will show you the way.”

 

“Thank you, Your Excellency.” Royce bowed as did all of the other Knights except Sheeva. She simply nodded her head.

 

After he had left, they followed the guards to an air speeder large enough to carry them all.

 

_You controlled your temper admirably, Sheeva Ren,_ Minas congratulated her silently.  _I would not have been terribly surprised if you had taken your light saber to the Governor's neck._

 

Sheeva shrugged. “We may wish to return to Coruscant again someday-- and we are under orders not to provoke them.”

 

Minas nodded his massive head.

 

“Do you think that Solo is here?” Polax asked in a whisper. The little Knight nervously fingered the hilt of his light saber. His brother Hastur had been one of Ben Solo's closest friends; and Polax had murdered him. The Governor was not the only one that Solo might wish to dispose of.

 

“Unless Kyla Ren somehow gave away our mission, I doubt it.” Sheeva shrugged. “It would be folly for the Resistance to try to come here-- and what would they be looking for if they did?”

 

“Do not underestimate Ben Solo,” Nippet the Ewok Knight said in her accented Basic. “If he was able to kill Master Snoke and the Praetorian Guard, he is even stronger than he was at Master Luke's-- I mean,  _Skywalker's_ \-- academy.”

 

For a moment, the Knights were silent as they thought of the place they had met. None of them had come to the Academy seeing to join the Darkside; but somehow it had become the destiny that they could not escape. Even Luke Skywalker had seen that at the end …

 

“Solo could not stop us from destroying the Academy and we were weaker then than we are now,” Sheeva finally said into the silence. “When we find him-- whether it's here or some other world-- he will not defeat us.”

 

“Kyla Ren wants Solo for herself,” Royce pointed out. There was a look of wounded pride on his face. While he had no special desire for the Supreme Leader, the idea that any woman would prefer Solo to him was a sour one. “We cannot kill him unless you are seeking to break with Kyla and the First Order.”

 

Sheeva paused.

 

The others waited expectantly.

 

This was a dangerous moment for her, Sheeva knew. To declare herself in open rebellion against Kyla Ren would be tantamount to declaring treason against the First Order. The other Knights might join her-- but only if they were convinced that she was stronger than Kyla Ren ….

 

Kyla who had beaten her when Kyla was far weaker than she was now.

 

“Killing Ben Solo would not be in our best interests unless he leaves us with no other choice,” she said finally. “The Supreme Leader has expressed an interest in dealing with him herself, after all.” And another thought occurred to one … one that she kept securely hidden behind her most private mental shields.  _If Ben Solo sired the powerful child growing in Kyla Ren now, he could do the same for me … a child that would give me a legacy powerful enough to stand up to the Supreme Leader's …_ “But if he should appear on Coruscant while we are here-- or anywhere else the Knights venture-- we must not let him escape our grasp.”

 

_Ben Solo is potentially the greatest challenge to the Knights of Ren,_ Minas added mentally.  _We should begin training together soon. It has been a long time since we fought as one unit._

 

“I could take him,” Royce declared confidently. “I've beaten him in combat before.”

 

Nippet barked out a laugh. “At the Academy … when he feared his own power more than he feared us. You are strong in the Force-- we all are-- but we must not be overconfident. He knows us better than anyone else-- and if someone can find a way to turn our strengths into weaknesses, it would be him.”

 

“Because of his blood?” Royce scoffed. “He'll bleed like any other man.”

 

“He is strong with the Force,” the Ewok replied in an unperturbed fashion. “Stronger than any one of us.”

 

_That is why we must face him as group,_ Minas insisted. 

 

They were the Knights of Ren, Sheeva realized. Even though all of them knew that fighting Ben Solo was not their wisest course of action, all seemed to expect that they would do at one time or another. “I suggest we stop worrying about Ben Solo until such time as he actually shows up. Right now, we are here on a mission for our Supreme Leader-- and Kyla Ren does not expect us to fail.”

 

..**..

 

The Emperor's Palace … or the Jedi Temple … depending on one's point of view … was surrounded by a privacy force shield. Armed guards stood on the outskirts with heavily armed speedsters. The Governor's personal guard brought them to the primary entrance.

 

“ _Order the guards to accompany you and leave the air speeder behind. We will return it to the Governor when we are ready to leave,”_ Sheeva directed. She might have lacked Royce's subtly with the mind trick, but she  _was_ powerful enough for this. “ _The Guards are to return in two standard hours.”_

 

The Governor's men nodded and headed off to follow her bidding.

 

When they were gone, Sheeva activated the force shield control that came with the pass that the Governor had given them and they walked onto the grounds.

 

“Shall we close the shield behind us?” Polax asked.

 

“No,” Nippet asserted. “We may need to exit quickly and I would rather not have to wait for Sheeva to open the shield.”

 

_Or have to drag me with her if I was injured,_ Sheeva thought with a smile. “Very well. The shield stays down. Minas, can you sense if anyone is inside the temple now?”

 

The giant Knight stared at the Temple for a moment and shook his head.  _There's too much interference. The Darkside is strong from the Emperor's presence, but the Light still exists from the time the Jedi lived here. If anyone else is inside, they are too far away for me to sense in this fog._

 

“There can't be Light without Darkness and vice versa,” Royce said philosophically. “Let's go.”

 

They walked inside the Temple.

 

“Polax,” Sheeva asked, “did you have a chance to go over the file that Kyla Ren provided about what the First Order knew about the Temple?”

 

“Yes.” Polax had a mind like a holocrystal. Once he memorized something, he never forgot. Perhaps that was one of the reasons he was still haunted by his brother's murder. “The Jedi archives were destroyed or confiscated by the Empire after the fall of the Jedi, but there's an underground vault that should hold the most important secrets of the Jedi and Sith. Emperor Palpatine maintained it as his own treasure room when he took possession of the Temple.”

 

“And you can guide us to this treasure room?” Sheeva asked whimsically.

 

“Of course.”

 

It was Nippet the Ewok who spoke next after they walked in silence for a time. “Sheeva, did you deactivate the security system?”

 

“There was no need,” Sheeva replied. Did Nippet think she was an idiot? “The pass grants us passage.”

 

“Then why is it shut off?”

 

“Kriff.” Sheeva reached for her light saber and activated it. “Minas, do you sense anyone now?”

 

Minas had lifted his staff into battle position as well.  _No. Not yet._

 

“It could be nothing,” Royce offered. “With the guards outside perhaps the Governor's people didn't feel the need to keep an interior security system active.”

 

“The pass has a security function on it,” Sheeva pointed out. “The systems should be on.”

 

“What do we do now?” Polax looked at her.

 

“We move forward. Minas, keep searching for any other life signs. I don't want to be caught unawares. The rest of you do the same … just in case something gets past Minas.”

 

_If something gets past me it will be because I'm dead,_ the giant Knight replied with a touch of irritation.

 

Sheeva bit back an angry response. They moved forward cautiously, alert to disturbances in the Force as well as more mundane evidence. None of them sensed anything.

 

They finally reached a room dedicated to the Separatist movement during the Clone Wars. There were a number of the old battle droids locked into position as though prepared to fight the manikins of Clonetroopers and Jedi that were also present.

 

“The vault door is on the other side of this room,” Polax told them.

 

They entered the room.

 

And all hell broke loose.

 

The battle droids immediately activated and began firing at them.

 

Sheeva gestured and froze the bolts heading in her direction, and then returned them to their source.

 

Nippet leaped up and deflected a blaster bolt back to the droid that had fired it at her.

 

Royce dodged the blasts headed his way.

 

Minas whirled his staff about, deflecting the bolts headed in his direction.

 

Polax deflected a bolt with his light saber and slammed his attacker into a wall with the Force.

 

The droids continued their attack.

 

The Knights of Ren formed a circle, back to back, as they had been taught so long ago … by Luke Skywalker. 

 

It took them twenty minutes to deal with the droids.

 

By the time it was over, Polax had take a painful blaster bolt injury to his side. The others were uninjured, but more tired than they would have expected.

 

“Minas, carry Polax. Royce, Nippet, you and I will force the vault open.” She glanced over to the injured Polax. “It's not likely we'll destroy the archive by forcing the door is it?”

 

“I don't think so,” Polax replied through gritted teeth. 

 

“He didn't know about the droids,” Royce snapped. “How do we know if he's right about the vault? Don't you have the access code with that kriffing pass?”

 

“I tried it. It's not working.” Sheeva glared at him. 

 

“The droids are not standard security,” Polax told them. “Someone must have reprogrammed them.”

 

“We're not the first to try to get into the archive then,” Sheeva sighed. “If someone has beat us to those scanners we may have a problem.”

 

“We'll never know until we get inside that kriffing vault,” Polax said through gritted teeth. “So let's just do it.”

 

“Royce, Nippet, on my mark,” Sheeva directed. She reached into the Force. “Now!”

 

The door was thick and strong, but not strong enough to resist the power of three Knights. It tore open with a thunderous protest.

 

They could spot the dim glow of numerous holocons and various artifacts.

 

And then they spotted something else.

 

Someone else.

 

He was tall … even taller than Minas.

 

And with the door open, his presence burnt through the Force, a perfect mixture of Light and Dark.

 

He held a light saber in one hand.

 

The other crackled with lightning.

 

Ben Solo.

 

“Kriff,” Polax whispered.

 

For a change, the famously calm exterior of Royce was shattered. “What do we do?”

 

Nippet raised her light saber and saluted briefly in Ben Solo's direction.

 

“We are the Knights of Ren,” Sheeva said softly. “What else can we do? We attack.”

 

And they did.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: And now at last the Knights of Ren meet Ben Solo. I had some fun giving them some personality. Hope you liked it.


	28. Enemies and Allies

 

 

General Armitage Hux frowned as he stared at the pad in his hands. “Sensors show that this room has been cleared of any listening devices. We're free to speak clearly, ladies and gentlemen.” He looked up. “So we may begin.”

 

A young woman stood beside him. She was wearing the uniform of a clerical worker. She took the pad from him.

 

The assembled men and women looked at the young woman questioningly. They turned to the General.

 

“Rey is very discrete,” Hux assured them. “You can speak freely in front of her.”

 

Admiral Rae Sloan ran a hand through her graying hair and stared at the others. “We all know why we're here. To discuss our new Supreme Leader's … plans for the First Order.”

 

“We all know the risk of this conversation, right?” Admiral Ozzel asked nervously. He was a nervous-looking man. He had cause to be; his father had been unfortunate enough to mess up repeatedly in front of Darth Vader himself. “If the Supreme Leader should discover we had this talk ...”

 

“Then we had best stopping wasting time,” Commodore Grammel snapped, totally unimpressed with Ozzel's rank. “While I think we all agree that having a human in charge of the First Order is a distinctive improvement over her predecessor, I am concerned that Kyla Ren's plans for the First Order may be counterproductive for its long term survival.”

 

Fleet Admiral Pellaeon, aged, but still strong, glared at the others. “One of the greatest admirals the Empire ever had was not human and came closest to us all of resurrecting the Empire.”

 

“While we all remember Grand Admiral Thrawn,” Sloan replied quickly, seeking to head off a confrontation that could derail the whole meeting, “his contributions to the Empire are not part of the discussion at hand. Leader Ren seeks to create an army of Force users. This may not be in our long term interests.” She steepled her fingers. “There would be advantages to that, of course. The Jedi Knights served the Old Republic for thousands of years ...”

 

“But they were a power unto themselves,” Pellaeon replied. “The current Knights of Ren are loyal to Kyla Ren rather than the First Order. If she should have a veritable army of them, our more conventional forces might become … superfluous. And if the Knights should turn against the First Order, we would have no defense against them ...”

 

“Our training regime is very successful,” Hux reminded them. “I have no doubt that it could be modified to successfully control these young Force sensitives.”

 

“And yet it's not perfect,” Sloan remarked. “We are aware that one of the Resistance's current operatives was once a Stormtrooper. Without his inside knowledge, it is doubtful they could have destroyed Starkiller.”

 

Hux bit back a retort. He was all too aware of what FN-2187 had been able to accomplish. In the short time before his death, Snoke had been all too willing to remind him of that fact.

 

“The Emperor saw the danger in the Jedi long before the Old Republic,” Admiral Sloan replied. “They wielded too much power. They had weakened the Republic. We would have been easy prey for any invader that came along. The Empire was not held together by the nebulous power of the Force-- it was the strength and will of our troops, the leadership of our military, the guiding genius of the Emperor ...”

 

“The Emperor was Force Sensitive himself,” Pellaeon replied softly.

 

“That's never been proven,” Grammel retorted hotly. “The Emperor defeated the Separatists, he made us strong again ...”

 

“What does this have to do with anything?” Ozzel asked. “Force Sensitive or not, the Emperor is long gone … Snoke is gone. We are left with Kyla Ren as Supreme Leader. The key word being 'supreme'. What can we do to change her mind about this … this new Jedi Corps?”

 

“Our duty is to the First Order,” Sloan replied. “It is the legacy of the Empire. We must take whatever steps necessary to protect it. If that means dying to carry out the orders of Kyla Ren, then that is what we do. If it is to oppose her ...”

 

“You're talking treason,” Grammel said softly.

 

“We cannot allow the First Order to fall,” Pellaeon rebutted. “The New Republic has fallen to pieces in the wake of Hosnia. Without a unifying power, the Galaxy will fall into chaos. The Supreme Leader may sincerely want to bring peace, but if we decide that her strategy will cause the First Order's failure, then we may have to take steps.”

 

“She's Force Sensitive!” Ozzel protested. “We cannot oppose her. She would see our intent in our thoughts! Any of her Knights would. How could we possibly put an end to her reign?”

 

“She trusts Hux,” Sloan pointed out. “They have worked closely since she became Supreme Leader. And I have no doubt that General Hux can mask his thoughts well enough to do anything that might be required.”

 

“Is that right, General?” Pellaeon asked him. “Are you capable of doing your duty to the First Order without regard to any personal loyalty you might have to the Supreme Leader?”

 

Hux said nothing for a moment. His eyes flickered over towards the girl they had heard him call Rey. “You'll find, Admiral, that I am always capable of doing my duty. Isn't that right … Supreme Leader Ren?”

 

“Rey” smiled. “It is indeed. I see that you were right to insist that we allow this meeting to take place, General.” She reached down to her belt and drew forth her light saber.

 

Ozzel promptly wet himself.

 

Sloan and Grammel stood up, drawing their weapons. Pellaeon remained seating. He simply sighed.

 

“For the record,” Kyla Ren told them as she began swinging her light saber. “If you had come to me with your concerns, I would have been willing to listen and try to find common ground. I'm not my father. I don't require absolute obedience.”

 

“You're just a child,” Sloan said angrily. She knew she was looking death in the face but she refused to back down. “Your impetuosity will destroy everything that we built. You have to be stopped.”

 

“And what have you built, Admiral? After the Battle of Jakku, what was left of the Imperial Fleet fled to the Outer Rim like frightened bantha cubs. If Father had not come to your aid, if he had not taught you how to survive here, you would have all died decades ago.” Kyla's lips twisted. “Without him, there would have been no First Order. Now … now you think your 'wisdom and experience' are sufficient to guide the First Order without me … without the Force. You have learned nothing.”

 

“Mercy, Supreme Leader,” Ozzel pleaded.

 

“Oh shut up, Ozzel,” Pellaeon muttered. “Try not to disgrace your rank any more than you already have.” He nodded at Kyla Ren and General Hux. “This is their time now, not ours. We did our best-- for the Empire and the First Order. The future will belong to them.”

 

“Coward!” Sloan cried and fired her blaster at him.

 

The bolt froze in mid-air.

 

“Fleet Admiral Pellaeon is many things, but he is not a coward.” Kyla waved a finger at Sloan. “You, on the other hand, are an extraordinary brave and talented officer, Admiral Sloan. If I could be assured of your loyalty, you would have been a valuable asset.” The Supreme Leader frowned. “Unfortunately ...”

 

She gestured and the blaster bolt flew back and stuck Sloan, sending her crashing down in a smoking heap.

 

Grammel glared hatred at her. He snarled at Hux. “Traitor!” He hurled himself at the General as though determined to spend his last breath in murder.

 

Kyla Ren stepped in front of Hux and smoothly cut the attacking Commodore in half with one blow of her light saber.

 

Pellaeon watched her impassively. Ozzel whimpered underneath his breath.

 

“Fleet Admiral Pellaeon, I will have you removed from command and placed into protective custody,” Kyla told him finally. “I have not yet made up my mind as to your fate.”

 

“Yes, Supreme Leader.” The old man nodded calmly. “I will not resist.” His gaze flickered towards Hux who had watched everything calmly. “You were well served today. None of us had any idea that General Hux was so loyal to you.”

 

General Hux said nothing.

 

“I treasure Armitage Hux's loyalty to our case,” Kyla told him. She looked at Ozzel. “Admiral, you have not exactly covered yourself with glory today, but I am going to give you a final chance to serve me today.”

 

“Thank you, Supreme Leader,” he blubbered.

 

“Clean yourself and meet me on the command deck in half an hour.” Kyla looked at him distastefully before glancing back at Admiral Pellaeon. “Thank you for your cooperation, Fleet Admiral. Even now, you are a credit to the First Order.”

 

“Thank you.” He frowned and looked again at Ozzel.

 

“Guards will be in shortly to take care of everything,” Kyla told him. “We will speak again, gentlemen. Walk with me, General Hux.”

 

The two of left the room, nodding to the troopers that had been outside, waiting for the word to be given.

 

“Thank you, Armitage. I value your loyalty,” Kyla said with a soft smile as the two of them walked.

 

“Of course, Supreme Leader.” Hux was practically beaming. The General was practically starved for praise, Kyla had discovered-- a valuable tool in learning to work with him. “Do you think it's wise to leave Pellaeon and Ozzel alive?”

 

“Pellaeon is no fool. He knows now what will happen if he crosses us-- and to be frank, he's valuable enough as an officer I would like to convince him to remain on our side.” Kyla was leading them to sickbay. “Ozzel … Ozzel is weak and a fool.”

 

“He can still be dangerous … especially if he knows that you have contempt for him. He did not become an admiral through nepotism alone. He can be more dangerous than he appears to be.”

 

“I have plans for Admiral Ozzel,” Kyla told him. “Now onto more important matters: Captain Phasma's recovery.”

 

“Yes.” Hux swallowed, looking unhappy. “You saw the reports?”

 

“Yes.” Kyla looked away from the General. “The damage was … extensive. Beyond conventional medicine's ability to repair.”

 

“Yes. However, I found some … options in the Old Imperial Database. And with Phasma's permission, I … did what had to be done.”

 

“I … see.” Kyla was silent for a moment and then changed the conversation. “My Knights have made it to Coruscant. We should hear from them shortly.”

 

“As soon as they return with the device, I will begin mass production, Supreme Leader.”

 

“Very well.” Kyla's hand went down to her stomach. She was still able to conceal her condition but it was only a matter of time before it became obvious. She had hoped that Phasma would stand at her side. Would that be possible now? “I have been wanting to visit Phasma.”

 

“I am sure she will be happy to see you, Supreme Leader. She has had a … difficult transition to her new form.”

 

“New form?” Kyla inquired.

 

“Yes. Phasma's armor was damaged and did not fully protect her. She clung to life, but the damage was too extensive for bacta and normal cybernetics to compensate. I authorized the medical droids to remove her brain and still-viable organs and house them in a specially constructed cybernetic body.”

 

Kyla frowned. “You made her into another Darth Vader?”

 

“Oh no. That form was too limited. Phasma did not want that at all.” Hux looked at her. “She favored a different form. One that will give her speed as well as power.” He paused. “It was based on a Separatist Warlord from the Clone Wars era. Updated with modern technology, of course.”

 

“Of course,” Kyla echoed. “I look forward to seeing our friend again.”

 

“And here we are.” Hux walked through the sickbay doors with the air of someone who had been there many times. He led the Supreme Leader to a room in the back and punched in a private access code. “Phasma, the Supreme Leader is here to speak with you.”

 

He walked through the door.

 

Kyla followed him without hesitation. “Captain Phasma, it is good to see you … again.” She stared at the tall (even taller than Phasma had been before) figure before her. _She still has her eyes, at least._

 

“Supreme Leader. Armitage has told me of your ascension. I live to serve you and the First Order.”

 

The voice, though electronically amplified, was the same too. 

 

“I am pleased to hear that, Captain,” Kyla told her firmly. She hoped that her surprise-- and pity; Phasma would despise pity-- was not evident on her face. “In fact, if you are up to it, I would welcome your presence on the bridge.”

 

“I am ready,” Phasma announced. She paused, her metallic feet shuffling on the deck of the ship. “Supreme Leader, I do have a request.” 

 

“Oh? What would that be?”

 

“The traitor. FN-2187. If he still lives, I would like to … deal with him myself.”

 

Kyla agreed without hesitation. “I will issue an order that FN-2187 is to be taken alive. If he has not been already killed, we will find him and bring him to justice. You have my word on it, Captain.”

 

“Thank you, Supreme Leader. I am ready to serve.”

 

 

Admiral Ozzel was waiting for them in the command center when they arrived. Kyla had briefed Captain Phasma on what she was to do when the time came. The man was sweating heavily when they arrived, but Kyla simply nodded at him. “Admiral Ozzel, please open a com channel to the entire fleet. I wish to make an address.”

 

“Of course, Supreme Leader!” The older man rushed to the com system and activated the com channel himself. He was as eager to please as a freshly assigned ensign. “Com channel is open!”

 

“Please come to stand at our side.”

 

Hesitantly, the Admiral joined them.

 

Phasma stood behind them, her new metallic body was tall enough to look a Wookie in the eye. She waited impassively.

 

“This is Supreme Leader Kyla Ren. I know that this is the first time that many of you have seen me without my mask. I am Master of the Knights of Ren, and as the daughter of former Leader Snoke, I was the logical choice to succeed her. I know that many of you may think me too young for such responsibilities, but I assure you I am prepared to lead. In the days to come I will gladly listen to the wisdom and experience of my commanding officers as we make the transition to my leadership.”

 

Ozzel puffed himself up slightly. He was starting to smile. Did he really think that he was going to have a place at the table.

 

“For those who offer me honest advice with the intent to make the First Order stronger, I promise that I will listen. I will not always take your advice, but I will listen to it. The Force gives me many powers, but omniscience is not one of them. I am prepared to be educated for my role.” Kyla made a slight nod in Phasma's direction.

 

The cyborg drew back her arm.

 

“But for those who think my inexperience means that I am not fit to lead … who believe that I am naive as well as young … I offer this warning. Do not try me. I am my Father's daughter, and I do not forget.” She nodded her head in Phasma's direction. “Or forgive.”

 

Ozzel had time to scream as Captain Phasma's metallic arm tore his heart from his chest.

 

Kyla watched his body fall to the floor. “Serve me well, and the First Order will bring a new order to the Galaxy. Betray me …. and no power in the Galaxy will save you. Thank you for your time. Close the channel.”

 

The com officer-- staring at Ozzel's body-- hurriedly shut off the channel.

 

Kyla sat back in the command chair. “Someone clean this up.” 

 

General Hux took his place at her right hand side. Phasma stood at her left.

 

_I will give you everything,_ Kyla told the life growing within her.  _And together we will rule the galaxy as mother and child._

 

But even as she thought that, she could hear the voice of Leia Organa again.  _“She will leave you behind ...”_

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note: At this point I think it's pretty certain that Phasma will not return in Episode 9. That doesn't mean I can't use her here. :D Phasma is now a female version of General Grievous in case it wasn't made obvious enough in the text. The somewhat cooler version of Grievous that appeared in the Clone Wars animated series.


End file.
